“We Aren’t Here to Win; We are Here Not to Lose”
Emergency Physicians’ Communicative Management of Uncertainty
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21616560 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Laura E Miller (0000-0002-6868-6710, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, corresponding author), Dajung Woo (0000-0001-6731-9436, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 38 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Pages | 1255-1265 |
| Publication date | 2023-05-12 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Health Communication (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1041-0236 • E-ISSN: 1532-7027 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/10410236.2021.2001916 |
| PMID | 34802338 |
| OpenAlex | W3215992180 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 41 |
Healthcare providers in hospital emergency departments (EDs) work under high uncertainty and pressure to manage a variety of patients efficiently. Whereas much existing research has examined communicative implications of uncertainty from patients' perspectives, we explored ED physicians' experiences of uncertainty in their everyday work environment. Through an ethnographic fieldwork in an ED, we identified three main sources of uncertainty routinely faced by physicians: (a) patients' incorrect expectation about the role of ED; (b); patient variability and ED physicians' breadth of expertise; and (c) emerging and unexpected changes in patient cases after handoffs. We also found how ED physicians managed these uncertainties, including: (1) direct admission of scientific uncertainty to patients; (2) lowering epistemic uncertainty through swift Internet searches; and (3) maintenance of situational uncertainty. We discuss implications of these findings for researchers, providers, and hospital organizations
Political science · Public relations · Clinical Reasoning and Diagnostic Skills · Emergency and Acute Care Studies · Family and Patient Care in Intensive Care Units · Psychology · Social Psychology
Measuring the sources and content of relational uncertainty
The Many Meanings of Uncertainty in Illness
Varieties of Uncertainty in Health Care
Uncertainty in Illness
Trends in US Emergency Department Visits for Mental Health, Overdose, and Violence Outcomes Before and During the Covid-19 Pandemic
Reconceptualization of the Uncertainty in Illness Theory
The Interpretation of Cultures
Information Seeking and Avoiding in Health Contexts
Communication and Uncertainty Management
Physicians’ attitudes about communicating and managing scientific uncertainty differ by perceived ambiguity aversion of their patients
Reconceptualizing uncertainty in illness
We're Going to be Survivors”
Swift role negotiations
Time for ethnography
Interpersonal Expectations, Expectancy Violations, and Emotional Communication
| Citations per year | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2025 - 2025 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |