title: Breaking bad news-what patients want and what they get: evaluating the SPIKES protocol in Germany.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Evaluation of the SPIKES protocol, a recommended guideline for breaking bad news, is sparse, and information about patients' preferences for bad-news delivery in Germany is lacking. Being the first actual-theoretical comparison of a 'breaking bad news' guideline, the present study evaluates the recommended steps of the SPIKES protocol. Moreover, emotional consequences and quality of bad-news delivery are investigated.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 350 cancer patients answered the MABBAN (Marburg Breaking Bad News Scale), a questionnaire representing the six SPIKES subscales, asking for the procedure, perception and satisfaction of the first cancer disclosure and patient's assign to these items.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Only 46.2% of the asked cancer patients are completely satisfied with how bad news had been broken to them. The overall quality is significantly related to the emotional state after receiving bad news (r = -0.261, P < 0.001). Patients' preferences differ highly significantly from the way bad news were delivered, and the resulting rang list of patients' preferences indicates that the SPIKES protocol do not fully meet the priorities of cancer patients in Germany.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It could be postulated that the low satisfaction of patients observed in this study reflects the highly significant difference between patients' preferences and bad-news delivery. Therefore, some adjunctions to the SPIKES protocol should be considered, including a frequent reassurance of listeners' understanding, the perpetual possibility to ask question, respect for prearrangement needs and the conception of bad-news delivery in a two-step procedure.
authors: Institutional Review Board. Electronic address: carola.seifart@staff.uni-marburg.de.
authors: C
authors: C
authors: Seifart
authors: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy.
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Hofmann
authors: Institutional Review Board.
authors: T
authors: T
authors: Bär
authors: Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, Philipps-University of Marburg,Marburg.
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Riera Knorrenschild
authors: Hospital Sonnenblick, Germany.
authors: U
authors: U
authors: Seifart
authors: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy.
authors: W
authors: W
authors: Rief
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D057240:Patient Preference; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011379:Prognosis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014342:Truth Disclosure; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: bad-news delivery; breaking bad news; cancer diagnosis; spikes protocol