Patient and Clinician Risk Perception
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Patient and clinician perception of peri-operative risk using verbal probability expressions
IRAS ID
254136
Contact name
Matthew Wiles
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 7 months, 19 days
Research summary
Before having an operation doctors use expressions such as high risk, or low risk to describe the chance of complications occurring. Complications include things such as strokes and heart attacks and even death. It is thought that using words like this, instead of percentages makes it easier for patients to understand their level of risk. It is also often hard for a doctor to give a patient an exact percentage.
It is important that patients have a good understanding about their level of risk associated with an operation so they can make informed decisions about whether to go ahead with it. This is an important part of taking consent before an operation.
The aim of this study is to assess whether using expressions such as high risk and low risk to communicate the chance of a complication occurring during an operation is useful.
Different patients may assign different meanings to these expressions. If it is found that patients interpret these expressions differently from how the doctor intended it would suggest that the way doctors communicate risk to patients should be reviewed.
Patients will be asked if they are willing to participate in the study and after giving consent they will complete a questionnaire. The questionnaire will list various expressions used by doctors to describe the chance of a complication occurring during an operation, such as high risk and low risk. Each participant will be asked to give a percentage for each of the expressions. The questionnaire will be completed by patients who are waiting to have an operation at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital.
REC name
North East - York Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/NE/0361
Date of REC Opinion
16 Nov 2018
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion