AMEN in challenging conversations: bridging the gaps between faith, hope, and medicine

Abstract

All health care practitioners face patients and families in desperate situations who say, "We are hoping for a miracle." Few providers have any formal training in responding to this common, difficult, and challenging situation. We want to do our best to preserve hope, dignity, and faith while presenting the medical issues in a nonconfrontational and helpful way. We present the acronym AMEN (affirm, meet, educate, no matter what) as one useful tool to negotiate these ongoing conversations.