Interventions for improving medical students' interpersonal communication in medical consultations.

Background: Communication is a common element in all medical consultations, affecting a range of outcomes for doctors and patients. The increasing demand for medical students to be trained to communicate effectively has seen the emergence of interpersonal communication skills as core graduate competencies in medical training around the world. Medical schools have adopted a range of approaches to develop and evaluate these competencies.

A national study of the unmet needs of support persons of haematological cancer survivors in rural and urban areas of Australia.

Purpose: This study aimed to compare support persons of haematological cancer survivors living in rural and urban areas in regard to the type, prevalence and factors associated with reporting unmet needs.

Methods: One thousand and four (792 urban and 193 rural) support persons of adults diagnosed with haematological cancer were recruited from five Australian state population-based cancer registries. Participants completed the Support Person Unmet Needs Survey (SPUNS) that assessed the level of unmet needs experienced over the past month across six domains.

To adhere or not to adhere: Rates and reasons of medication adherence in hematological cancer patients.

To conduct a comprehensive review to examine among hematological cancer patients: (1) rates of adherence to self-administered cancer treatments; and (2) factors impacting on their adherence. Fifty two eligible publications were identified. The majority focused on Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia (CML) (n=40) and Acute Lymphoid Leukaemia (ALL) (n=11) patients.

Are Australian clinicians monitoring medication adherence in hematological cancer survivors? Two cross-sectional studies.

Background: Hematological cancer survivors are growing in number and increasingly rely on oral therapy. Given known poor outcomes associated with non-adherence and previous evidence that many patients do not fully adhere to their treatment regimen, this study aimed to determine the degree to which clinicians monitor adherence to oral medication in hematological cancer survivors.

Methods: Data was combined from two cross-sectional surveys of a heterogeneous sample of 431 hematological cancer survivors recruited from three outpatient hematology clinics in three different states (n = 215) and one state cancer registry (n = 216) in Australia.

What do haematological cancer survivors want help with? A cross-sectional investigation of unmet supportive care needs.

Background: This study aimed to identify the most prevalent unmet needs of haematological cancer survivors.

Methods: Haematological cancer survivors aged 18-80 years at time of recruitment were selected from four Australian state cancer registries. Survivors completed the Survivor Unmet Needs Survey.

Keeping the 'Goose' on the Menu: Response to Commentaries on Financial Incentives in Health Behaviour Change.

We welcome the commentaries by Hagger et al. and Stephens and consider their observations to be timely and constructive. Hagger et al.

Keeping the ‘goose’ on the menu: response to commentaries on financial incentives in health behaviour change.

We welcome the commentaries by Hagger et al.and Stephens and consider their observations to be timely and constructive. Hagger et al.

Format and readability of an enhanced invitation letter did not affect participation rates in a cancer registry-based study: a randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of an "enhanced" invitation letter in increasing participation in an Australian cancer registry-based study and assess the representativeness of the study sample.

Study Design And Setting: Eight hundred hematological cancer survivors, diagnosed within the last 3 years and aged 18-80 years at recruitment, were selected from one Australian state-based cancer registry. Half were randomly allocated to receive the standard invitation letter (control group).

Improving access to information and support for patients with less common cancers: hematologic cancer patients' views about Web-based approaches.

Background: Meeting the psychosocial needs of vulnerable groups such as cancer survivors remains an ongoing challenge. This is particularly so for those who have less access to the usual forms of medical specialist and in-person support networks. Internet-based approaches offer an opportunity to better meet patients' information and support needs by overcoming the barrier of geographic isolation.

What's good for the goose is good for the gander. Guiding principles for the use of financial incentives in health behaviour change.

Background: The use of financial incentives or pay-for-performance programs for health care providers has triggered emerging interest in the use of financial incentives for encouraging health behaviour change.

Purpose: This paper aims to identify key conditions under which the use of financial incentives for improvements in public health outcomes is most likely to be effective and appropriate.

Methods: We review recent systematic reviews on their effectiveness in changing health behaviour and identify existing moral concerns concerning personal financial incentives.

Problem-based learning: a dissemination success story?

The demand to implement clinical and educational strategies based on evidence has increased in the past two decades. Over a similar time frame, the problem-based learning (PBL) approach has been widely adopted by undergraduate medical schools, in spite of empirical reviews suggesting that its effectiveness may be limited. Students claim that PBL provides a more satisfying learning experience than traditional methods.