Melanoma survivors experience continuing symptoms long after treatment, namely anxiety, and they express a need for information about long-term melanoma effects, psychosocial support, and prevention of further skin cancer.
PURPOSE: Cancer care guidelines recommend regular distress screening of patients, with approximately one in three patients with cancer experiencing significant distress. However, the implementation of such programs is variable and inconsistent. We sought to assess the feasibility of implementing a hybrid electronic and paper screening tool for distress in all patients coming to a large academic cancer center and an associated integrated network site. METHODS: Patients at an academic cancer center (Stanford Cancer Center) and its associated integrated network site received either an electronic or on-paper modified Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System-Global Health questionnaire, to assess overall health and distress. We used the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance implementation framework to test and report on the feasibility of using this questionnaire. Iterative workflow changes were made to implement the questionnaire throughout the healthcare system, including processes to integrate with existing electronic health records. RESULTS: From June 2015 to December 2017, 53,954 questionnaires representing 26,242 patients were collected. Approximately 30% of the questionnaires were completed before the visit on an electronic patient portal. The number of patients meeting the positive screen threshold remained around 40% throughout the study period. Following assessment, there were 3,763 referrals to cancer supportive services. Of note, those with a positive screen were more likely to have a referral to supportive care (odds ratio, 6.4; 95% CI, 5.8 to 6.9; P < .0001). CONCLUSION: The hybrid electronic and on-paper use of a commonly available patient-reported outcome tool, Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System-Global Health, as a large-scale distress screening method, is feasible at a large integrated cancer center.
123 Background: Primary palliative care (PC) is critical to improve access to PC from the point of diagnosis. Still, barriers exist to providing primary PC worldwide, including a lack of awareness, time, and training. Interactive online learning experiences can help overcome these. This project describes a massive open online course (MOOC)--Palliative Care Always--designed to build primary PC skills in a global audience. Methods: A team of PC providers and online instructional experts developed 12 modules that included: patient scenes, brief lectures, empathy exercises, and Google Hangout discussions. Course objectives included awareness of PC, practicing effective communication skills, basic symptom assessment and management. The target audience included oncology clinicians; secondary audience included patients and families. The MOOC launched January-April 2016. Participant engagement, satisfaction and self-reported knowledge were assessed through pre- and post-surveys. Multiple choice assessments captured knowledge gain. Follow-up assessments will be distributed three months post-MOOC. Results: By April 2016, the course reached 1,300 participants from 91 countries. 54% were from the US, followed by India, Brazil, and Canada. 76% were healthcare professionals, the majority being nurses (40%), physicians (19%) and social workers (13%). The remaining 24% included patient, caregivers, and others interested in PC. Top reasons for enrolling were interest in PC, personal growth and job relevance. On average, 27% of enrollees actively engaged week-over-week. Eighty-six percent of respondents were “very satisfied” with the amount learned, and over 50% cited learning “a great deal” in: communicating difficult news, goals of care, psychosocial and hospice care. 93% cited being “very likely” to recommend the course. Conclusions: Interactive MOOC experiences have the potential to build PC awareness, primary skills and global PC networks. Upcoming iterations will incorporate: accommodations for varying levels of PC knowledge; additional opportunities for interaction between participants, including social networks; blended learning; and evaluation of impact on practice and healthcare outcomes.
As the advanced practice provider (APP) workforce continues to rapidly grow in healthcare, there is a greater need for APP leadership positions. Often, these positions are organically designated to the best clinicians on the team, who may not have leadership experience. Stanford Health Care Center for Advanced Practice embarked on formalized leadership training using a newly developed administration specialty within the APP Fellowship Program to support new leader transition.
The analysis with ANOVA test showed significant difference between the residents and all the years of graduation (p LT 0.05); among medical students there was significant difference in fifth year medical comparisons with the following: first, second and third year (p LT 0.05). Conclusion: As the residents have a greater contact with severely ill and terminally patients, they have an increased security to handle the situations and communicate better with patient and family. Regarding the students, as it was expected a greater confidence of the sixth year medical students comparing with the fifth year, it is required to exclude the possibility that fifth-year medical students have a false confidence, because they have just began to go to Hospital in the medical internship and were not exposed yet to difficult situations.
9061 Background: Little is known about melanoma survivors and their long-term symptoms, sun protection practices and support needs from health professionals. Methods: Melanoma survivors previously treated at Stanford Cancer Center completed a quality improvement survey to explore the value of a melanoma survivorship clinic, as part of the Stanford Cancer Survivorship Program. The survey period ranged from July 2012 to September 2012, and 17% of the 893 invited survivors responded. We compared responses of melanoma survivors diagnosed between 2006-2011 (short-term) and 1995-2005 (long-term). Results: 153 cancer survivors (41% short- and 59% long-term) completed the survey. On average, they were 62 years of age (SD=15.1), 94% Caucasian, 47% female, and 68% underwent local excision alone. Long- vs. short-term survivors were less likely to receive routine skin screening every 3-6 months (38% vs. 83%, p<0.001) or follow-up for their melanoma in the last 6 months (54% vs. 76% p=0.045). Sun protection practices were similar between groups; however, long-term survivors decreased their use of tanning beds (33% vs. 18%, p=0.03) and time seeking a tan relative to short-term survivors (72% vs. 48%, p=0.002). Overall, survivors rated anxiety as the most prevalent symptom (33%), followed by numbness of the scar site (31%), forgetfulness (26%), sleep problems and depression (23%), pain and fatigue (17%). Sixty-eight percent of all survivors reported their symptoms were not addressed by their health provider, and of those stating their provider addressed their symptoms (32%), the survivor initiated the conversation 71% of the time. In general, survivors desired education about the long-term effects of melanoma (41%), family risk of skin cancer (28%), and protecting their skin from further damage (20%). Twenty percent of all survivors requested treatment for the long term effects of melanoma, and 12% wanted emotional support. Conclusions: Melanoma survivors experience continuing symptoms long after treatment, namely anxiety, and express a need for information about long-term melanoma effects, psychosocial support, and prevention of further skin cancer. Clinicians should routinely assess survivorship needs to improve quality of life.
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