Dataset Information

Healthcare professionals' perspectives on the unmet needs of cancer patients and family caregivers: global psycho-oncology investigation.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

This international study aimed to compare healthcare professionals' perspectives on the unmet needs of their cancer patients with those of family caregivers and to investigate the degree to which patients' age group moderates the associations.

Methods

Healthcare professionals involved in the care for cancer patients and their family caregivers were invited to participate in the International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS) Survivorship Online Survey. A total of 397 healthcare professionals from 34 countries provided valid study data. The participants evaluated whether the unmet need was the same for all age groups of patients and the degree of their patients' needs not being met per patients' age group. They evaluated the same questions for family caregivers.

Results

Patients' unmet needs in medical care were evaluated as greater than those of caregivers across all age groups. On the other hand, pediatric patients' unmet needs for spiritual concerns, sexuality/intimacy, and insomnia/fatigue were evaluated as greater than those of caregivers, whereas adolescent and young adult patients' unmet needs for symptom management were greater than those of caregivers. Patients' other unmet needs were evaluated as comparable with those of caregivers regardless of age groups.

Conclusion

The findings provide insights how best healthcare providers stratify resources to address the unmet needs of patients and caregivers by the patients' age. Development of systematic assessment of unmet needs and provision of interventions tailored for patients' lifespan to address the unmet needs of cancer patients, and caregivers are warranted.

SUBMITTER: Wang AW

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10715848 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Healthcare professionals' perspectives on the unmet needs of cancer patients and family caregivers: global psycho-oncology investigation.

Wang Ashley Wei-Ting AW Kim Youngmee Y Ting Amanda A Lam Wendy Wing Tak WWT Lambert Sylvie D SD

Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer 20221215 1

<h4>Purpose</h4>This international study aimed to compare healthcare professionals' perspectives on the unmet needs of their cancer patients with those of family caregivers and to investigate the degree to which patients' age group moderates the associations.<h4>Methods</h4>Healthcare professionals involved in the care for cancer patients and their family caregivers were invited to participate in the International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS) Survivorship Online Survey. A total of 397 healthca ...[more]

PMID: 36520223

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Project description:Adolescents with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) are at greater risk for mental health problems than their HIV-negative counterparts. However, there is a dearth of evidence on the need for mental health services, including interventions for depression in adolescents with HIV (AWHIV), in most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study's objective was to explore the unmet mental health needs of AWHIV to inform the development and implementation of a psychological intervention for depression in AWHIV in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. A descriptive phenomenological qualitative study design was used. Consultative meetings with providers and 45 in-depth interviews were conducted with AWHIV, caregivers, and healthcare providers (HCPs) to explore their experiences and unmet mental health needs for AWHIV. Data from the consultative meetings were triangulated to validate the obtained information with those from interviews. Data were organized and managed with the aid of NVIvo-11. The thematic analysis framework guided data analysis. Five major themes emerged: Experience of complex symptoms, unmet need for services, impact of the unmet needs, ways utilized in managing symptoms, and preferred intervention. Complex depressive symptoms expressed as physical, behavioral, or somatic complaints adversely affected ART adherence and academic performance, led to substance use, and compromised overall quality of life in AWHIV. HIV-Care and Treatment Centers (HIV-CTCs) did not conduct formal mental health screenings. Instead, caregivers and HCPs addressed the symptoms of mental health problems with death threats and corporal punishments. No evidence-based depression interventions existed in HIV-CTCs for observed symptoms. This study reports on unmet mental health needs with a clear impact on the lives of AWHIV, which may have significant implications for treatment adherence. There is an urgent need to develop and implement effective and scalable interventions to address these mental health needs.

Project description:Family caregivers in palliative care have a need for knowledge and support from health professionals, resulting in the need for educational and supportive interventions. However, research has mainly focused on the experiences of family caregivers taking part in interventions. To gain an increased understanding of complex interventions, it is necessary to integrate the perspectives of health professionals and family caregivers. Hence, the aim of this study is to explore the perspectives of health professionals and family caregivers of delivering and participating in a psycho-educational intervention in palliative home care.A psycho-educational intervention was designed for family caregivers based on a theoretical framework describing family caregiver's need for knowing, being and doing. The intervention was delivered over three sessions, each of which included a presentation by healthcare professionals from an intervention manual. An interpretive descriptive design was chosen and data were collected through focus group discussions with health professionals and individual interviews with family caregivers. Data were analysed using framework analysis.From the perspectives of both health professionals and family caregivers, the delivering and participating in the intervention was a positive experience. Although the content was not always adjusted to the family caregivers' individual situation, it was perceived as valuable. Consistently, the intervention was regarded as something that could make family caregivers better prepared for caregiving. Health professionals found that the work with the intervention demanded time and engagement from them and that the manual needed to be adjusted to suit group characteristics, but the experience of delivering the intervention was still something that gave them satisfaction and contributed to them finding insights into their work.The theoretical framework used in this study seems appropriate to use for the design of interventions to support family caregivers. In the perspectives of health professionals and family caregivers, the psycho-educational intervention had important benefits and there was congruence between the two groups in that it provided reward and support. In order for health professionals to carry out psycho-educational interventions, they may be in need of support and supervision as well as securing appropriate time and resources in their everyday work.

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Dataset Information

Healthcare professionals' perspectives on the unmet needs of cancer patients and family caregivers: global psycho-oncology investigation.

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Publications

Healthcare professionals' perspectives on the unmet needs of cancer patients and family caregivers: global psycho-oncology investigation.

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