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Patients' family relations play an important part in the provision of patient-centred cancer care, not least when healthcare professionals encounter seriously ill patients with dependent children. Little is known about how children are perceived and dealt with in clinical encounters. In this qualitative comparative study, we explore the influence of medical contexts in three Danish hospital wards, haematology, oncological gynaecology and neuro-intensive care, on communication with patients about their children. In exploring the degree to which the inclusion of children in clinical encounters is dependent on context, we took a comparative approach based on fieldwork in wards either exclusively focusing on cancer treatment or partially involved in critical phases of cancer treatment. We conducted 49 semi-structured, in-depth interviews with doctors and nurses, and 27 days of participant observation. The thematic analysis was based on Bateson's conceptualisation of communication. We found that healthcare professionals' approach to children in clinical encounters and the ways in which children were positioned on each ward were influenced by aspects specific to the ward, including the diagnosis and treatments that related specifically to the patient. Our findings suggest the need to explore further the influence of medical contexts on the inclusion of children in patient communication.

OBJECTIVES: The incidence of and survival from lung cancer are associated with socioeconomic position, and disparities have been observed in both curative and palliative treatment for lung cancer. 'Patient navigation' is valuable in addressing health disparity, with timely treatment and transition to care. We conducted a pilot study to test the feasibility of a patient navigator program (PAtient COach) for newly diagnosed lung cancer. We present the trial, the findings from the pilot study and discuss factors that might have affected recruitment rates.MATERIAL AND METHODS: We invited 24 lung cancer patients referred for chemotherapy to the Oncology Department at Herlev University Hospital, Denmark, to participate in the pilot study. To be eligible, patients had to live alone, have no formal education beyond secondary school, have one or more comorbid conditions, have a performance status of 1 or 2 or be over 65 years of age. The patient navigators targeted four phases of treatment: planning, initiation, compliance and end of treatment.RESULTS: Six months after the start of the study, we had recruited only six patients, due mainly to inherent patient resistance and because only 50% of eligible patients were invited. Of the 18 patients who did not wish to participate, 13 agreed to fill in a baseline questionnaire. The most frequent reason given for not wanting to participate was a belief that a patient navigator would be of no benefit.CONCLUSIONS: The pilot study met a number of internal and external obstacles to patients' recruitment. The study provides insight into the barriers to recruitment of socially disadvantaged cancer patients to clinical trials and will inform future trial designs.