Letter

Communicating risk

BMJ 2003; 327 doi: 10.1136/bmj.327.7428.1403-b (Published 11 December 2003)
Cite this as: BMJ 2003;327:1403.3

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Patients often have complex understanding of risk

  1. Steve Iliffe, reader in general practice (s.iliffe@pcps.ucl.ac.uk),
  2. Jill Manthorpe, professor of social work
  1. Royal Free and University College London Medical School, London NW3 2PF
  2. Social Care Workforce Research Unit, Franklin Wilkin Building, King's College, London SE1

    EDITOR—Why do doctors make such heavy weather of risk? The discussion of risk assessment and communication still slips into patronising patients and oversimplifying issues.1 We think that individual decisions are almost always reasoned and that patients often have more complex understanding of risk than their doctors.

    There are two …

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