Incorporating Patient-Reported Outcomes to Improve Emotional Distress Screening and Assessment in an Ambulatory Oncology Clinic

Abstract

A pilot intervention collecting Patient-reported outcomes in two ambulatory clinics led to increase in psychosocial distress screening followed by sustained improvement, indicated by both process and QOPI measures.

Enhancing clinical practice in the management of distress: The Therapeutic Practices for Distress Management (TPDM) project

“…While attempts have been made to integrate distress management through screening programs, there is a discrepancy between the attitude and actual practice . Time, appropriate space needed to address private concerns and emotional distress identified in psychosocial screening, and skill are often cited as barriers by health care providers . Buy‐in from health care professionals is another significant barrier impeding the full benefit of screening programs on patient health outcomes.…”

“…In 2015, 40% of patients with cancer in the province of Ontario in Canada were not screened for distress symptoms. 9 Patients may not report their symptoms, 10 and psychosocial screens may not be thoroughly completed 11 or documented appropriately, 12,13 raising concerns about compliance to care standards. In addition is the challenge of implementing evidencebased psychosocial interventions.…”

“…15 Time, appropriate space needed to address private concerns and emotional distress identified in psychosocial screening, and skill are often cited as barriers by health care providers. 12,17 Buy-in from health care professionals 15,18,19 is another significant barrier impeding the full benefit of screening programs on patient health outcomes. To ensure high quality of care, education, training, and support of health care providers in using evidence-based interventions for distress are recommended.…”

Implementation of distress screening in an oncology setting

“…Specifcally, research indicates that clinician documentation is improved, as is referral for distress. 26 Further, patient distress is minimized, patient educational needs are decreased, and communication with physicians and health care providers increase. 27,28 It should be noted, however, that the available evidence suggests that screening in the absence of an established triage plan does not improve outcomes.…”

Overview of Patient-Facing Systems in Patient-Reported Outcomes Collection: Focus and Design in Cancer Care

“…iPad use, password retrieval, etc.). 15 As a result, in-clinic assessment has been shown to have high patient response rates, 28,29 but requires dedicated staff and hardware to enable collection.…”