CSI: Bethesda

Summarn Recognition of psychological distress in patients with cancer. some of which can be ameliorated With appropriate intervention. is a crucial aspect of patient care. Previous studies, with the exception of one. indicate that oncologists often fail to detect general distress and do not identify those patients with significant psychological disorder. As approximately 25-30% of patients experience anxiety and or depression severe enough to merit psychological intervention. this is a serious problem. This study assessed the ability of five oncologists to recognise distress in newly referred out-patients who were receiving bad news. Self-report measures of the oncologists' satisfaction with their performance during the bad news interviews were also collected. Each patient had two clinical interviews in which information concerning diagnosis and treatment