Table 4 Opinions on impediment of terminal state diagnosis and speaking bad news
|  | n (%)†| ||
|---|---|---|---|
Total (n = 181) | Attending (n = 94) | Resident (n = 87) | |
Terminal state diagnosis | |||
Uncertainty of disease course | 119 (34.1) | 66 (36.3) | 53 (31.7) |
Ambiguity of terminal state diagnosis criteria | 105 (30.1) | 51 (28.0) | 54 (32.3) |
Discomfort with legal responsibility | 58 (16.6) | 29 (15.9) | 29 (17.4) |
Unawareness of the terminal state diagnosis | 37 (10.6) | 12 (6.6) | 25 (15.0) |
Consideration of terminal diagnosis as unnecessary due to the possibility of giving up on treatment | 15 (4.3) | 11 (6.0) | 4 (2.4) |
Others | 15 (4.3) | 13 (7.1) | 2 (1.2) |
Total | 349 (100.0) | 182 (100.0) | 167 (100.0) |
Speaking bad news | |||
Patient’s disappointment and frustration | 100 (27.9) | 54 (29.2) | 46 (26.4) |
Family members’ opposition | 91 (25.3) | 46 (24.9) | 45 (25.9) |
Fear that the patient would think the worst case | 55 (15.3) | 28 (15.1) | 27 (15.5) |
Feeling of giving up | 41 (11.4) | 16 (8.6) | 25 (14.4) |
Time constraint | 25 (7.0) | 13 (7.0) | 12 (6.9) |
Patient’s request for maintenance of treatment | 19 (5.3) | 10 (5.4) | 9 (5.2) |
Patient’s incomprehension of the condition | 9 (2.5) | 7 (3.8) | 2 ( 1.1) |
The risk of breaking rapport | 9 (2.5) | 4 (2.2) | 5 (2.9) |
Others | 10 (2.8) | 7 (3.8) | 3 (1.7) |
Total | 359 (100.0) | 185 (100.0) | 174 (100.0) |