Balancing hope and honesty

Being truthful about a serious prognosis while not removing all hope — focusing on what can still be done, such as symptom control and support.

Patients value honesty delivered with compassion. Realistic reassurance ("We can’t cure this, but we can keep you comfortable and support you") is usually the right register.

More glossary terms

ABCDE approachA systematic method for assessing and treating an acutely unwell patient — Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Exposure — dealing with each before moving on.
AMPLE historyA focused emergency history — Allergies, Medications, Past history, Last meal, Events — taken quickly in acute situations.
ARCPThe annual assessment that decides whether a doctor in training has met the competencies to progress to the next stage.
AVPU scaleA rapid way to grade consciousness — Alert, responds to Voice, responds to Pain, Unresponsive — used in initial assessment.

Put it into practice

Rehearse PLAB 2 stations with AI simulated patients and get structured feedback after every consultation.

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