Perceptions of the cancer care left undone in primary and community services: A mixed methods evaluation

Abstract

The consequences of cancer and cancer treatment remain an understudied area of healthcare (Macmillan, 2013). However, the number of people in the United Kingdom (UK) living with and beyond cancer is increasing and is set to double from more than 2 million in 2010 to 4 million by 2030 (Macmillan, 2012). The role of primary and community care's workforce in caring for people during and after their cancer treatment is becoming well recognised, however, exactly what this role involves in practice is unclear (Hobbs et al., 2016). An improvement in the quality and availability of primary care data is needed in the UK, among other European countries (European Commission, 2018). Workforce challenges threaten primary and community care, and may result in shortages in care for people with cancer (PWC). There is evidence to suggest associations between care left undone in nursing and patient outcomes (Recio-Saucedo et al., 2017). This evaluation aimed to elucidate what work is currently left undone in caring for PWC in primary and community care. Between 2006 and 2016, 34% of all cancer diagnoses in England were from a 2-week wait referral and 26% were from an urgent or routine General Practitioner (GP) referral (NCRAS, 2016). As survivorship and end-of-life care become a greater focus of cancer care,

Cancer survivorship care and general practice: A qualitative study of roles of general practice team members in Australia

“…Indeed, cancer survivors value a survivorship delivery system that provides quality care co‐ordination and clear processes for transitioning care back to primary care providers (Mead et al., 2020). However, the role of the GPT in delivering this care is variable, with studies highlighting a lack of sustainable funding models to facilitate General Practitioner (GP) involvement, suboptimal regular information sharing, insufficient contact with oncologists and patients during treatment phase, and minimal formal training for GPs in survivorship care (DiCicco‐Bloom & Cunningham, 2013; Halpern et al., 2015; Lawler et al., 2020; Lawrence et al., 2016; Lisy et al., 2020, 2021; Meiklejohn et al., 2016). In addition, professional roles and expectations between GPT members and cancer specialists are not well defined (Lawrence et al., 2016; Weaver et al., 2013).…”

Caring for cancer patients in acute cancer care settings: Voices of South African nurses

“…The fact that they were always rushing and did not have time to provide the best quality nursing care, added to the emotional distress they experienced. Lawler et al (2020), when investigating the perceived results the workforce pressure has on the nursing care of cancer patients, found psychosocial care to patients and their families one of the most forsaken aspects of care. As seen from the current study, not having time to sit with patients and allay their anxiety, indicates the opportunity for nurses to provide psychosocial support and care, an aspect of cancer care that limits suffering (Maree et al, 2021), has already been eroded by the workload.…”

Development and validation of self‐screening tool for nutrition risk in patients with gastric cancer after gastrectomy: A study protocol

“…However, obtaining routine nutritional risk screenings for nutrition management for discharged patients with gastric cancer is challenging. If regular nutrition screening is adopted, it will undoubtedly increase the workload and/or the number of medical personnel (Lawler et al., 2020 ). This is because there are many professional words (such as stress metabolism) and calculation formulas (such as BMI and food intake) in the existing nutrition screening tools, which only professionals can complete (Kondrup et al., 2003 ; Rubenstein et al., 2001 ; van Bokhorst‐de van der Schueren et al., 2014 ).…”