Journal of oncology practice
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Multicenter Study
Mixed-Methods Study of the Impact of Chronic Patient Death on Oncologists' Personal and Professional Lives.
Although some research has found that health care professionals experience grief when their patients die, within the oncology context, few studies have examined the impact of this loss on oncology personnel. Given the paucity of empirical studies on this topic, this research explored the impact of patient death on oncologists. Methods and Materials This study used a mixed-methods design. The qualitative component used the grounded theory method of data collection and analysis. Twenty-two oncologists were recruited from three adult oncology centers. Purposive sampling was used to gain maximum variation in the sample. The quantitative component involved a convenience sample of 79 oncologists recruited through oncologist collaborators. ⋯ Frequent patient death has an impact on oncologists' lives, some of which negatively affect the quality of life for oncologists, their families, and their patients.
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Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Quality Indicators of End-of-Life Care in Patients With Cancer: What Rate Is Right?
To develop data-driven and achievable benchmark rates for end-of-life quality indicators using administrative data from four provinces in Canada. ⋯ There is significant variation in end-of-life quality indicators across regions in four provinces in Canada. Using this study's methods-deriving empiric benchmarks and funnel plots-regions can determine their relative performance with greater context that facilitates priority setting and resource deployment. Applying this study's methods can support quality improvement by decreasing variation and striving for a target.
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Multicenter Study
Perceptions of palliative care among hematologic malignancy specialists: a mixed-methods study.
Patients with hematologic malignancies are less likely to receive specialist palliative care services than patients with solid tumors. Reasons for this difference are poorly understood. ⋯ Most hematologic oncologists view palliative care as end-of-life care, whereas solid tumor oncologists more often view palliative care as a subspecialty for comanaging patients with complex cases. Efforts to integrate palliative care into hematologic malignancy practices will require solutions that address unique barriers to palliative care referral experienced by hematologic malignancy specialists.
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Multicenter Study
Oncologist factors that influence referrals to subspecialty palliative care clinics.
Recent research and professional guidelines support expanded use of outpatient subspecialty palliative care in oncology, but provider referral practices vary widely. We sought to explore oncologist factors that influence referrals to outpatient palliative care. ⋯ Improving provision of palliative care in oncology will likely require efforts beyond increasing service availability. Raising awareness of ways in which subspecialty palliative care complements standard oncology care and developing ways for oncologists and palliative care physicians to collaborate and integrate their respective skills may help.
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Multicenter Study
Hepatitis B screening before chemotherapy: a survey of practitioners' knowledge, beliefs, and screening practices.
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation is a potentially fatal complication of chemotherapy that can be largely prevented with medication, provided that asymptomatic HBV carriers are identified. We explored the knowledge, beliefs, and practices of Canadian oncologists/hematologists regarding HBV screening before chemotherapy. ⋯ Canadian oncologists and hematologists tend to underestimate the risk of HBV reactivation and report relatively low HBV screening rates. Among those practitioners who do screen, the favored strategy is selective screening of patients with HBV risk factors. However, oncologists'/hematologists' knowledge regarding risk factors for HBV carriage seems to be low, potentially undermining the success of a selective screening strategy.