Bibliotherapy, Students in Medicine and Health Sciences Read to Patients With Cancer During Treatment, an Evaluation by Patients and Students.

Bibliotherapy has been defined in different ways, but fundamentally means helping people through the use of books. In clinical contexts, it often refers to psychological self-help interventions that use treatment books [1]. However, other reading therapies exist, such as reading to patients during their treatment. Studies have demonstrated the positive effects of the use of reading in the treatment of patients such as increased self-awareness, empathy and hope and less negativity. The Reader, a British national charity, is the pioneer of a specific literature-based intervention i.e. shared reading. This approach is different from many reading therapies because it emphasizes on (1) reading aloud so that the book is a live presence and not an object of study (as is the case in educational settings) or a subject of chat (as in a book club) and on (2) literature (poetry and fiction) and its role in offering a model of human thinking and feeling. In the model of The Reader, small groups (2-12 people) come together weekly, to read novels, short stories and poetry together aloud. The target groups of The Reader are very diverse such as ordinary library visitors, vulnerable youth, rehabilitation groups in psychiatric hospitals, groups in prisons, prevention groups for stress and burnout, growth groups, personal etc.

This project, however, is unique in different ways. First, reading sessions will be organized in the hospital setting in a 1:1 relationship, as opposed to in small groups. Second, we will asses the possible impact of the intervention on emotional wellbeing and quality of life of patients with cancer, as well as on the student's professional development. This will be done by means of questionnaires (not as a quantitative study, but as a basis for the in-depth interview), diary notes, and an in-depth interview (student and patient separately and once together) .

The primary aim of this project is to assess the acceptability of this intervention. Specifically, this study seeks feedback on how well the reading sessions are received by the patients and the students. Secondly, we will assess if the sessions meet the needs of patients in their coping with cancer and help students in their professional development. To assess acceptability, in-depth interviews will be used and participants will be asked about their opinions regarding the reading sessions. We chose this particular interview type because it grants the interviewer flexibility to follow up with relevant questions and probes to gather richer information. The interviews will be recorded for transcription and analysis.

A call for participation for this study was made to students in Medicine and Health Sciences of Ghent University at a lecture of Jane Davis, the founder of The Reader. Students could submit their application; in total more than 50 applications were received. Three physicians (Dr. Helewaut, Dr. Pype and Dr. Kerre) independently scored the applications on the basis of motivation, background and age.