148 - The Perception of Communication: The Ways Clinicians and Parents of Chronically Ill Children Communicate

Children with chronic illnesses are often exposed to many medical facilities and providers who must speak to them about their illness. Due to the sensitivity of the topic and the emotional strain, the communication can be weaker or strained from the physicians. The aim of this research was to determine how parents are the main information source and how these parents and other clinicians perceive the communication of the information provider as weak. The participants included three parents and two clinicians who underwent an interview and filled out a questionnaire about communication independently in connection with a child’s illness (their own or those they have interacted with). Findings revealed that parents were the main source of information for children about their illness, not the physician, due to the age of their child, the scary atmosphere of doctor’s offices, and trust in the parents. Additionally, all participants reported negative experiences with doctor communication, such as confusing medical jargon, not listening to concerns, lack of decorum and not trusting the patients, which suggests that doctors need more communication training. Finally, the interviews revealed high personal evaluation of the participant’s communication skills but agreement with poor communication tactics in the questionnaire. Further research includes interviewing more people, including physicians and other members of the medical community to get a holistic view of the opinions of the public.