Concordant palliative care delivery in advanced head and neck cancer

Cannon, Sydney T.; Gabbard, Jennifer; Walsh, Rebecca; Statler, Tiffany M.; Browne, J. Dale; Marterre, Buddy

doi:10.1016/j.amjoto.2022.103675

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 58 publications

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“…This unclarity may undermine the quality of palliative care. For instance, it may delay the initiation and referral to specialized palliative care [ 28 , 29 ]. In addition, as a well-defined competency profile for specialists is lacking, and it is unclear whether people can call themselves ‘specialists’ after completing a course in palliative care.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generalist, specialist, or expert in palliative care? A cross-sectional open survey on healthcare professionals’ self-description

van Zuilekom,

Metselaar,

Godrie

et al. 2024

BMC Palliat Care

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Background In the Netherlands, palliative care is provided by generalist healthcare professionals (HCPs) if possible and by palliative care specialists if necessary. However, it still needs to be clarified what specialist expertise entails, what specialized care consists of, and which training or work experience is needed to become a palliative care specialist. In addition to generalists and specialists, ‘experts’ in palliative care are recognized within the nursing and medical professions, but it is unclear how these three roles relate. This study aims to explore how HCPs working in palliative care describe themselves in terms of generalist, specialist, and expert and how this self-description is related to their work experience and education. Methods A cross-sectional open online survey with both pre-structured and open-ended questions among HCPs who provide palliative care. Analyses were done using descriptive statistics and by deductive thematic coding of open-ended questions. Results Eight hundred fifty-four HCPs filled out the survey; 74% received additional training, and 79% had more than five years of working experience in palliative care. Based on working experience, 17% describe themselves as a generalist, 34% as a specialist, and 44% as an expert. Almost three out of four HCPs attributed their level of expertise on both their education and their working experience. Self-described specialists/experts had more working experience in palliative care, often had additional training, attended to more patients with palliative care needs, and were more often physicians as compared to generalists. A deductive analysis of the open questions revealed the similarities and distinctions between the roles of a specialist and an expert. Seventy-six percent of the respondents mentioned the importance of having both specialists and experts and wished more clarity about what defines a specialist or an expert, how to become one, and when you need them. In practice, both roles were used interchangeably. Competencies for the specialist/expert role consist of consulting, leadership, and understanding the importance of collaboration. Conclusions Although the grounds on which HCPs describe themselves as generalist, specialist, or experts differ, HCPs who describe themselves as specialists or experts mostly do so based on both their post-graduate education and their work experience. HCPs find it important to have specialists and experts in palliative care in addition to generalists and indicate more clarity about (the requirements for) these three roles is needed.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generalist, specialist, or expert in palliative care? A cross-sectional open survey on healthcare professionals’ self-description

van Zuilekom,

Metselaar,

Godrie

et al. 2024

BMC Palliat Care

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Head neck cancer care- Communication and decision making regarding palliative care

Mali¹,

G.L.²

2023

Oral Oncology Reports

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Generalist, specialist, or expert in palliative care? A cross-sectional open survey on healthcare professionals’ self-description.

Zuilekom,

Metselaar,

Godrie

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Background In the Netherlands, palliative care is provided by generalist healthcare professionals (HCPs) if possible, and by palliative care specialists if necessary. However, it still needs to be clarified what specialist expertise entails, what specialized care consists of, and which training or work experience is needed to become a palliative care specialist. In addition to generalists and specialists, ‘experts’ in palliative care are recognized within the nursing and medical professions, but it is unclear how these three roles relate. This study aims to explore how HCPs working in palliative care describe themselves in terms of generalist, specialist, and expert and how this self-description is related to their work experience and education. Methods A cross-sectional open online survey with both pre-structured and open-ended questions among HCPs who provide palliative care. Analyses were done using descriptive statistics and thematic coding of open-ended questions. Results 854 HCPs filled out the survey; 74% received additional training, and 79% had more than five years of working experience in palliative care. Based on working experience, 17% describe themselves as a generalist, 34% as a specialist, and 44% as an expert. Almost three out of four HCPs attributed their level of expertise on both their education and their working experience. Self-described specialists and experts had more working experience in palliative care, often had additional training, attended to more patients with palliative care needs, and were more often physicians. 76% consider it important to have both specialists and experts in palliative care. However, there were divergent perspectives on the distinction between specialist and expert. HCPs wish more clarity about what defines a specialist or an expert, how to become a specialist or expert, and when you need a specialist or an expert. Conclusions Although the grounds on which HCPs describe themselves as generalist, specialist, or experts differ, HCPs who describe themselves as specialists or experts mostly do so based on both their post-graduate education and their work experience. HCPs find it important to have specialists and experts in palliative care in addition to generalists and indicate more clarity about (the requirements for) these three roles is needed.

show abstract

Concordant palliative care delivery in advanced head and neck cancer

Cited by 3 publications

References 58 publications

Generalist, specialist, or expert in palliative care? A cross-sectional open survey on healthcare professionals’ self-description

Generalist, specialist, or expert in palliative care? A cross-sectional open survey on healthcare professionals’ self-description

Head neck cancer care- Communication and decision making regarding palliative care

Generalist, specialist, or expert in palliative care? A cross-sectional open survey on healthcare professionals’ self-description.

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