Delivery of cancer care via an outpatient telephone support line: a cross-sectional study of oncology nursing perspectives on quality and challenges

Abstract

Rationale Patient support lines (PSLs) assist in triaging clinical problems, addressing patient queries, and navigating a complex multi-disciplinary oncology team. While providing support and training to the nursing staff who operate these lines is key, there is limited data on their experience and feedback. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study of oncology nurses’ (ONs’) perspectives on the provision of care via PSLs at a tertiary referral cancer center via an anonymous, descriptive survey. Measures collected included nursing and patient characteristics, nature of questions addressed, perceived patient and nursing satisfaction with the service, common challenges faced, and initiatives to improve the patient and nursing experience. The survey was delivered online, with electronic data collection, and analysis is reported descriptively. Results Seventy-one percent (30/42) of eligible ONs responded to the survey. The most common disease site, stage, and symptom addressed by PSLs were breast cancer, metastatic disease, and pain, respectively. The most common reported issue was treatment-related toxicity (96.7%, 29/30). Sixty-seven percent (20/30) of respondents were satisfied with the care provided by the service; however, many areas for potential improvement were identified. Fifty-nine percent (17/29) of respondents recommended redefining PSLs’ responsibilities for improved use, with 75% (6/8) ONs identifying high call volumes due to inappropriate questions as a barrier to care. Sixty percent (18/30) of ONs reported having hospital-specific management plans for common issues would improve the care provided by the PSL. Conclusion Despite high rates of satisfaction with the care provided by the PSL, our study identified several important areas for improvement which we feel warrant further investigation. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00520-022-07327-5.

Engagement, Advance Care Planning, and Hospice Use in a Telephonic Nurse-Led Palliative Care Program for Persons Living with Advanced Cancer

“…Nurses can augment traditional specialist palliative care using one of several existing palliative care delivery models. For instance, support lines staffed by oncology nurses who respond to calls for concerning symptoms, changes in clinical status, and medication management have demonstrated improvement in symptom severity, but have not shown reductions in health care use [ 6 , 7 ]. Pre-scheduled, nurse-initiated calls for patients receiving chemotherapy have also demonstrated improvements in symptom management [ 8 ].…”