Ambivalence: Motivational Interviewing Informed Communication for Serious Illness Care.

Authors

Mike Polisso, Danielle Chammas, Caroline Nattinger, Keri O Brenner, Jennifer DiBiase, Sarah Byrne-Martelli, Brianna Williamson

Published in

Journal of palliative medicine. Pages 10966218261492375. Oct 11, 2026. Epub Oct 11, 2026.

Abstract

Patients facing serious illness may experience ambivalence about important treatment decisions, sharing information with loved ones, or, perhaps most consequentially, living in a way that is aligned with their values. Motivational interviewing (MI) is a collaborative, person-centered communication style that explores ambivalence by eliciting a patient's motivations, values, and goals. MI offers a practical framework for serious illness communication (SIC), when patients and families often experience competing priorities and uncertainty. Through a clinical case, this article explores the four fundamental processes of MI-engaging, focusing, evoking, and planning-and reframes these concepts through a SIC lens. We highlight the application and adaptation of micro-skills (open-ended questions, affirmations, reflective listening, and summaries) to deepen understanding, explore ambivalence, and support values-concordant decision making. Integrating MI-informed communication strategies into serious illness care provides clinicians with practical tools to navigate ambivalence, foster collaboration, and evoke a patient's intrinsic motivation for decisions aligned with their values.

PMID:
42860702
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 12 Oct 2026.

Read full publication at:
Please sign in to see all details.

Stats

1-terrible, 9-excellent. How would you rate this publication? Sign in in to submit your rating.

Post a comment

You need to be signed in to post comments. You can sign in here.

Comments

There are no comments yet.