Coaching to support men in making informed choices about prostate cancer screening: A qualitative study

Dragan Ilic, Kerry Murphy, Veronica Collins, Carol Holden

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the perceptions of men, practice nurses (PNs) and general practitioners (GPs) on patient decision coaching for prostate cancer screening. Methods: Seven focus groups were conducted with 47 participants, representing three stakeholder groups − men, GPs and PNs. All focus group discussions were conducted by the same facilitator and guided by a semi-structured interview schedule. Transcriptions were analysed by thematic analysis. Results: Knowledge about the merits of prostate cancer screening was high amongst GPs, but limited with PNs and men. All groups saw the value in PN-led decision coaching for men considering screening for prostate cancer, but had reservations about its implementation in practice. Barriers to implementing a decision coaching system with PNs included staffing and cost of implementation. Conclusion: GPs, PNs and men identified benefits for the use of a PN-led decision coaching support intervention to assist men with making an informed choice about screening for prostate cancer. Stakeholders had reservations about how a PN-led intervention would effectively work in clinical practice. Practice implications: A feasibility study is required to examine barriers and enablers to implementing a PN-led decision coaching process for prostate cancer screening in the Australian primary healthcare setting.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)872-877
Number of pages6
JournalPatient Education and Counseling
Volume101
Issue number5
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 May 2018

Keywords

  • Decision making
  • Decision support model
  • Primary care
  • Prostate cancer

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