What’s the Best Way to Hear Bad News About Your Health?

When something abnormal comes up in a medical test, would you like to hear the news immediately from the lab or later from your doctor?

Researchers at the Houston Veterans Affairs Center for Innovations in Quality, Effectiveness and Safety recently conducted studies to determine whether patients and doctors agree on how abnormal test results should be communicated to patients. Not too surprisingly, patients by and large want results directly from the lab, as soon as they're available. Doctors...have reservations.

To explain the research and the results, and what it suggests for doctor/patient communication, we're joined by the two researchers on the study: Dr. Traber Giardina and Dr. Hardeep Singh from the Michael E. Debakey VA Medical Center and Baylor College of Medicine.

MORE: Do Patients and Physicians Agree on Releasing Abnormal Test Results Directly to Patients?