Dataset Information

Oncologist factors that influence referrals to subspecialty palliative care clinics.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

Recent research and professional guidelines support expanded use of outpatient subspecialty palliative care in oncology, but provider referral practices vary widely. We sought to explore oncologist factors that influence referrals to outpatient palliative care.

Methods

Multisite, qualitative interview study at three academic cancer centers in the United States with well-established palliative care clinics. Seventy-four medical oncologists participated in semistructured interviews between February and October 2012. The interview guide asked about experiences and decision making regarding outpatient palliative care use. A multidisciplinary team analyzed interview transcripts using constant comparative methods to inductively develop and refine themes related to palliative care referral decisions.

Results

We identified three main oncologist barriers to subspecialty palliative care referrals at sites with comprehensive palliative care clinics: persistent conceptions of palliative care as an alternative philosophy of care incompatible with cancer therapy, a predominant belief that providing palliative care is an integral part of the oncologist's role, and a lack of knowledge about locally available services. Participants described their views of subspecialty palliative care as evolving in response to increasing availability of services and positive referral experiences, but emphasized that views of palliative care as valuable in addition to standard oncology care were not universally shared by oncologists.

Conclusions

Improving provision of palliative care in oncology will likely require efforts beyond increasing service availability. Raising awareness of ways in which subspecialty palliative care complements standard oncology care and developing ways for oncologists and palliative care physicians to collaborate and integrate their respective skills may help.

SUBMITTER: Schenker Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3948709 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Oncologist factors that influence referrals to subspecialty palliative care clinics.

Schenker Yael Y Crowley-Matoka Megan M Dohan Daniel D Rabow Michael W MW Smith Cardinale B CB White Douglas B DB Chu Edward E Tiver Greer A GA Einhorn Sara S Arnold Robert M RM

Journal of oncology practice 20131203 2

<h4>Purpose</h4>Recent research and professional guidelines support expanded use of outpatient subspecialty palliative care in oncology, but provider referral practices vary widely. We sought to explore oncologist factors that influence referrals to outpatient palliative care.<h4>Methods</h4>Multisite, qualitative interview study at three academic cancer centers in the United States with well-established palliative care clinics. Seventy-four medical oncologists participated in semistructured int ...[more]

PMID: 24301842

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Project description:OBJECTIVES:Cancer survival and stage of disease at diagnosis and treatment vary widely across Europe. These differences may be partly due to variations in access to investigations and specialists. However, evidence to explain how different national health systems influence primary care practitioners' (PCPs') referral decisions is lacking.This study analyses health system factors potentially influencing PCPs' referral decision-making when consulting with patients who may have cancer, and how these vary between European countries. DESIGN:Based on a content-validity consensus, a list of 45 items relating to a PCP's decisions to refer patients with potential cancer symptoms for further investigation was reduced to 20 items. An online questionnaire with the 20 items was answered by PCPs on a five-point Likert scale, indicating how much each item affected their own decision-making in patients that could have cancer. An exploratory factor analysis identified the factors underlying PCPs' referral decision-making. SETTING:A primary care study; 25 participating centres in 20 European countries. PARTICIPANTS:1830 PCPs completed the survey. The median response rate for participating centres was 20.7%. OUTCOME MEASURES:The factors derived from items related to PCPs' referral decision-making. Mean factor scores were produced for each country, allowing comparisons. RESULTS:Factor analysis identified five underlying factors: PCPs' ability to refer; degree of direct patient access to secondary care; PCPs' perceptions of being under pressure; expectations of PCPs' role; and extent to which PCPs believe that quality comes before cost in their health systems. These accounted for 47.4% of the observed variance between individual responses. CONCLUSIONS:Five healthcare system factors influencing PCPs' referral decision-making in 20 European countries were identified. The factors varied considerably between European countries. Knowledge of these factors could assist development of health service policies to produce better cancer outcomes, and inform future research to compare national cancer diagnostic pathways and outcomes.

Dataset Information

Oncologist factors that influence referrals to subspecialty palliative care clinics.

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Oncologist factors that influence referrals to subspecialty palliative care clinics.

Similar Datasets

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