Patients' preferences for information.

In a study of patients' views of the type of information they would like to receive from the doctor 265 patients from four general practices were given a list of five areas of information - diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, aetiology and social effects of their illness - and asked to rank these in order of importance for that visit. In general, information on diagnosis and prognosis was the most highly valued, while the ways the illness would affect daily activities was the least preferred. Although information on treatment was rarely selected as the first preference it was often the second or third preference. Conversely, diagnosis was the first choice of the largest proportion of patients and the least valued information for 26%.