Abstract

Background and Aims: Breaking bad news to patients is a challenge for physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals in various clinical settings. This study aims to explore patients’ preferences when being told about an emerging life-threatening terminal illness, such as cancer, and to determine specific factors that can affect individuals’ responses upon the disclosure of the disease and its prognosis.

Methods: We employed a quantitative-cross sectional design using a convenient sample. A total number of 814 participants responded to an online survey invitation from four major cities in Saudi Arabia. Descriptive analysis was used to represent the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants, and the Chi-square (χ2) test was performed to analyze the differences in the disclosure preferences.

Results: Most participants preferred to be directly informed about an emerging diagnosis (85.7%), wished to be with their family upon the disclosure of the disease (98.3%), and preferred to be actively involved in the decision-making and treatment plan. Female participants noted to be keener for a diagnosis disclosure than males χ2(2) = 18.7, p < .01, and the same observation seen in singles compared to married participants, χ2(4) = 10.91, p < .05.

Conclusions: This study investigated public responses and preferences when being told about a terminal medical diagnosis. Healthcare providers are advised to plan ahead and make a strategy to report bad news to lessen the psychological burden on patients and their families.

Key words: Breaking bad news, Disclosure preferences, Terminal illness, Saudi Arabia