The Experience of Speech-Language Therapists and Audiologists When Delivering Bad News: A Qualitative Analysis

Background: As part of their professional responsibilities, speech-language therapists and audiologists are required to deliver bad news. Aims: The aim of this qualitative study is to describe and characterize the subjective experience of speech-language therapists and audiologists when delivering bad news to clients or their family members. Methods & Procedures: A group of 156 speech-language therapists and audiologists replied in writing to an open question asking them to describe a clinical encounter in which they delivered bad news. The texts that were generated in response to this question served as a data base. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyse data and generate themes. Outcomes & Results: Thematic analysis of participants' texts revealed the challenges inherent to the delivery of bad news. Four main themes emerged from text analysis: difficulty in phrasing the news; the deliverer's emotional experience; the receiver's reaction; and being alone or in companion with another healthcare provider during the delivery of the bad news. Conclusions & Implications: Speech-language therapists and audiologists experience difficulties similar to those experienced by other healthcare professionals when delivering bad news. Nevertheless, speech-language therapists and audiologists seem to perceive the delivery of bad news situation in a broader sense than the conventional definition given to this term in the medical arena.