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Evaluation of survivorship care plans in patients attending the Sydney Cancer Survivorship Centre

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Abstract

Purpose

The transitioning of cancer survivors from active treatment to surveillance care has been described as uncoordinated, with lack of communication between healthcare professionals. Survivorship care plans (SCP) are recommended to bridge this transitioning period and help improve coordination of care. SCP contain individualized information about a survivor’s cancer diagnosis, treatment, and recommendations for managing treatment-related side effects and improving lifestyle risk factors for cancer recurrence and chronic disease. The aims of the study were to assess the delivery, usefulness, and compliance with SCP of survivors attending a multidisciplinary survivorship clinic and to determine patient suggestions regarding how to improve SCP.

Methods

A total of 110 survivors were interviewed in-person or by phone regarding their SCP following a script with formalized questions. Data were analyzed quantitatively using descriptive statistics.

Results

Overall, 65% of participants (72/110) acknowledged having received a SCP and 86% found them useful. Only 11% of survivors (8/72) showed their SCP to other health professionals and about half (33/72) showed it to family/friends. Ninety percent of survivors (65/72) reported following at least one recommendation in their SCP.

Conclusion

Survivors found SCP helpful but did not share them with other healthcare providers, which questions their usefulness in coordinating care. There were challenges with SCP delivery. Survivors reported they were compliant with SCP lifestyle recommendations. Further research is required to address the utility of SCP to other stakeholders, such as general practitioners, to determine whether they receive the SCP, if they find them helpful, and their expectations regarding SCP.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all members of the Sydney Cancer Survivorship Centre clinic team for their assistance with this study and the survivors who participated. We acknowledge the assistance of Liam Obeid and Yu Ching (William) Lai with recruitment to the study.

Funding

Dr. Janette Vardy is supported by a National Health Medical Research Council Investigator Grant (APP1176221).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Kain Phansuwon, Sim Yee (Cindy)Tan, Ashanya Malalasekera & Janette L.Vardy

  2. Concord Cancer Centre, Concord Repatriation General Hospital, Hospital Rd, Concord, NSW, 2137, Australia

    Sim Yee (Cindy)Tan, Kim Kerin-Ayres, Ashanya Malalasekera & Janette L.Vardy

  3. Nutrition and Dietetics Department, Concord Repatriation General Hospital, Concord West, NSW, Australia

    Sim Yee (Cindy)Tan

Authors
  1. Kain Phansuwon
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  2. Sim Yee (Cindy)Tan
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  3. Kim Kerin-Ayres
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  4. Ashanya Malalasekera
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  5. Janette L.Vardy
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Contributions

Concept: Vardy and Tan; data collection: Phansuwon; data analysis: Phansuwon and Tan; first draft of manuscript: Phansuwon; review of manuscript: all authors.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Janette L.Vardy.

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Consent to participate

All participants gave consent.

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Not applicable.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethics approval

Study was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee at Concord General Repatriation Hospital reference: 2014–017.

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Phansuwon, K., (Cindy)Tan, S.Y., Kerin-Ayres, K. et al. Evaluation of survivorship care plans in patients attending the Sydney Cancer Survivorship Centre. Support Care Cancer 30, 2207–2213 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-021-06636-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-021-06636-5

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