Breast Cancer Patient Perception of the Helpfulness of a Prompt Sheet Versus a General Information Sheet During Outpatient Consultation: A Randomized, Controlled Trial

The purpose of this study was to determine the helpfulness of a prompt sheet versus a general information sheet for patient communication with physicians. Sixty women with breast cancer attending their first outpatient consultation with a breast medical oncologist were randomized to receive either a prompt sheet (PS) or a general information (GI) sheet regarding breast cancer. Analysis of the results found that helpfulness of the written material was rated higher in the PS group (8.5 ± 2) than the GI group (6.2 ± 3.6), P = 0.005. The mean score of helpfulness in communicating with physicians was 7.9 ± 2.4 and 5.7 ± 3.8, respectively, P = 0.01. There were no significant differences between the groups in the average total number of questions asked by the patients or average physician or patient speaking time. We conclude that a disease-specific prompt sheet provided before medical encounters may assist in communication between patients and physicians.