[Anna]

I trust my doctor to look out for my best interests. But, I couldn't help feeling disappointed that he didn't think much of a new biologic therapy -- even though he said that he didn't know a lot about it.

[Anthony]

My doctor's office contacted my insurance company to get approval for the surgery and chemotherapy treatments we talked about. But, the insurance company told him that they will only pay for the surgery. Now what?

[Nancy]

Before I got cancer, I worked Tuesday through Saturday from 8 in the morning to 4 in the afternoon. After my diagnosis, my cancer doctor said he could give me the drugs as an outpatient in his office -- but that the best time to do so was on Fridays.
 
[Narrator]

Cancer survivors, which includes anyone diagnosed with cancer, will need to negotiate about many things with a number of people. Welcome to Program 5 in the Cancer Survival Toolbox, about negotiating. If you would like to follow along with written material while listening to this program, please visit the Toolbox website at www.cancersurvivaltoolbox.org, where you can print a copy of the transcript.

A negotiation is a meeting with two or more people in which they discuss an issue and try to reach an agreement. In this program you will learn basic negotiation skills to help you ask for what you need after your cancer diagnosis. For example, you may have to make new arrangements with your family to handle household chores during treatment. You may need to negotiate a change in your work schedule with your boss. The place or type of treatment may have to be negotiated with your insurance company. Or, you may even negotiate your treatment plan with doctors, a radiation therapy department, or a chemotherapy clinic.

[Narrator]

When negotiating anything, it is important to believe that you are an equal to the person you are negotiating with no matter what your background. As Americans, we are proud of our different religious, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds. You should be proud of your background and not be embarrassed to openly share these important personal facts about yourself with your health care team. If you feel that your doctors and nurses are not dealing with you in the way that you would like, politely let them know what you expect. Their job is to help you and to make you comfortable. By sharing your wishes, you can help them accomplish those goals.

[Narrator]

Several skills will help you be a good negotiator. You must have good communication skills. That means that you need to listen to the information provided to you by other people and then take this information and use it to make your decisions. It also means that you must be sure that everyone in the negotiation clearly understands what you want to tell them. Part of this is identifying and expressing your values, the principles and standards you live by. You must be able to set your personal limits -- the boundaries of behavior you will not cross. And, you must be able to set your emotions aside when negotiating and be willing to look for more than one solution to any problem.

[Narrator]

There are five specific action steps you can take to prepare for any negotiation. First, gather the information you think you will need; and, second, use that information to plan an agenda for your negotiation discussions. Third, set limits as to the minimum you would accept as a solution to your needs and what trade-offs you would be willing to make. You need to decide on these before you actually get to the negotiating process. Fourth, listen to your inner voice. And, finally, try to create win-win situations in which you and the people you are negotiating with are satisfied with the outcome. Let's hear how Joan, an oncology nurse, finds these actions valuable in working with cancer survivors.

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