Communication and Care in an Acute Cancer Center: The Effects of Patients' Willingness to Communicate About Health, Health-Care Environment Perceptions, and Health Status on Information Seeking, Participation in Care Practices, and Satisfaction

Abstract

This study investigated the role of willingness to communicate about health (WTCH) among older patients in a state-of-the-art cancer center. Specifically, relationships were examined between patients' WTCH and their information seeking, perceptions of coping activities the center offered, and satisfaction with the center. The study also explored how those relationships may be mediated by patients' perceptions of the health-care environment and their health status. The results indicated that WTCH may play an important role in predicting information-seeking behaviors, perceived helpfulness of center-sponsored activities, and overall satisfaction with care received at the center. Evidence also was found that perceptions of the health-care environment mediated cancer patients' WTCH. The implications of these findings for communication theory and application, as well as limitations and future directions for research, are discussed.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The authors thank Cathy Oster, M.D., of the Memphis Cancer Center, for her invaluable contributions to this project.