Digital Professionalism in Patient Care: A Case-Based Survey of Surgery Faculty and Trainees.

BACKGROUND: Use of digital devices have become ubiquitous in healthcare and can create professionalism issues. This study presents opinions of faculty, residents, and medical students to inform policy on the appropriate use of digital devices in the patient care setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A survey was administered from September 2018 to October 2018 to faculty and residents within the general surgery department at a large academic medical center and all fourth-year medical students at an affiliated university. The survey included direct statements and case-based scenarios on similar themes to triangulate responses. RESULTS: There were 114 participants in the survey-50 faculty, 26 residents, and 38 medical students. Digital device utilization was equivalent among all groups, and all participants use a smartphone. Digital devices were most frequently used during rounds and clinical conferences. Overall, digital device use was found more appropriate when seen in the case-based format rather than as a direct statement. Furthermore, use of these devices was seen as most appropriate when the provider explained its use or left the room to use the device. CONCLUSIONS: Digital devices are used by faculty and trainees at similar rates for parallel purposes, and the benefits for patient-related care are evident. However, the use of digital devices in the presence of patients should be minimized and always preceded by an explanation. These findings can inform institutional policy when creating guidelines on the professional use of these devices in the patient care setting.

Correlates of health information seeking between adults diagnosed with and without cancer.

PURPOSE: To examine predictors of information seeking behavior among individuals diagnosed with cancer versus those without. METHODS: Cross-sectional data from the Health Information National Trends Survey 4 Cycles 1-3 (October 2011 to November 2013) were analyzed for 10,774 survey respondents aged ≥18 years. Binary logistic regression was used to examine the effect of socio-demographic and behavioral factors on health information seeking. RESULTS: Cancer diagnosis did not predict health information seeking. However, respondents diagnosed with cancer were more likely to seek health information from a healthcare practitioner. Compared to males, females were more likely to seek health information irrespective of cancer diagnosis. Regardless of cancer diagnosis, those without a regular healthcare provider were less likely to seek health information. Likelihood of seeking health information declined across education strata, and significantly worsened among respondents without high school diplomas irrespective of cancer diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: Respondents sought health information irrespective of cancer diagnosis. However, the source of health information sought differed by cancer diagnosis. Gender, education, and having a regular healthcare provider were predictors of health information seeking. Future health communication interventions targeting cancer patients and the general public should consider these findings for tailored interventions to achieve optimal results.

No man's land: information needs and resources of men with metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer.

The majority of men treated for prostate cancer will eventually develop castrate-resistant disease (CRPC) with metastases (mCRPC). There are several options for further treatment: chemotherapy, third-line hormone therapy, radium, immunotherapy, and palliation. Current ASCO guidelines for survivors of prostate cancer recommend that an individual's information needs at all stages of disease are assessed and that patients are provided with or referred to the appropriate sources for information and support. Earlier reviews have highlighted the dearth of such services and we wished to see if the situation had improved more recently. Unfortunately, we conclude that there is still a lack of good-quality congruent information easily accessible specifically for men with mCRPC and insufficient data regarding the risks, harms, and benefits of different management plans. More research providing a clear evidence base about treatment consequences using patient reported outcome measures is required.

Prenatal screening: an ethical agenda for the near future.

Prenatal screening for foetal abnormalities such as Down's syndrome differs from other forms of population screening in that the usual aim of achieving health gains through treatment or prevention does not seem to apply. This type of screening leads to no other options but the choice between continuing or terminating the pregnancy and can only be morally justified if its aim is to provide meaningful options for reproductive choice to pregnant women and their partners. However, this aim should not be understood as maximizing reproductive choice per se. Only if understood as allowing prospective parents to avoid suffering related to living with (a child with) serious disorders and handicaps can prenatal screening be a publicly or collectively funded programme. The alternative of moving prenatal testing outside the healthcare system into the private sector is problematic, as it makes these tests accessible only to those who can afford to pay for it. New developments in prenatal screening will have to be assessed in terms of whether and to what extent they either contribute to or undermine the stated aim of providing meaningful options for reproductive choice. In the light of this criterion, this article discusses the introduction of the new non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT), the tendency to widen the scope of follow-up testing, as well as the possible future scenarios of genome-wide screening and 'prenatal personalised medicine'. The article ends with recommendations for further debate, research and analysis.