Krebsfrüherkennung und Risikokommunikation

Abstract

In most psychological and medical research, patients are assumed to have difficulties with health statistics but clinicians not. However, studies indicate that most doctors have problems in understanding health statistics, including those of their own speciality. For example, only two out of 20 urologists knew the information relevant for a patient to make an informed decision about whether to take PSA screening for prostate cancer, just 14 out of 65 physicians in internal medicine understood that 5-year survival rates do not tell anything about screening's benefit, and merely 34 out of 160 gynecologists were able to interpret the meaning of a positive test result. This statistical illiteracy has a direct effect on patients understanding and interpretation of medical issues. Not rarely their own limited health literacy and their doctors' misinformation make them suffer through a time of emotional distress and unnecessary anxiety. The main reasons for doctors' statistical illiteracy are medical schools that ignore the importance of teaching risk communication. With little effort doctors could taught the simple techniques of risk communication, which would make most of their statistical confusion disappear.