Breaking bad news with compassion

Dr Sissy Frank MDU medico-legal adviser
ByDr Sissy Frank
Published15 February 2017
A planned, sensitive approach can ease the process of delivering bad news to a patient, writes Sissy Frank.

Allow enough time for the patient and their relative to express their emotions and ask questions.

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Providing reassurance of ongoing support can help the patient and their family cope with the situation and feel less isolated.

This page was correct at publication on 15/02/2017. Any guidance is intended as general guidance for members only. If you are a member and need specific advice relating to your own circumstances, please contact one of our advisers.

Dr Sissy Frank
Medico-legal adviser

Sissy trained in law in the US, graduating from Stanford University in 1990. She then changed careers and trained in medicine, obtaining an MD from Harvard Medical School in 1998 and completing her residency in paediatrics in 2001. She came to England in 2001 and completed further training in general practice, receiving her MRCGP in 2006. Before becoming an MLA, she worked as a GP partner in Kent.

Breaking bad news with compassion