University of Washington are at the forefront of delivering care to patients with cancer during this public health crisis. This Special Feature highlights the unique circumstances and challenges of cancer treatment amidst this global pandemic, and the importance of organizational structure, preparation, agility, and a shared vision for continuing to provide cancer treatment to patients in the face of uncertainty and rapid change.

The objective of this project was to design, implement and evaluate an oral health promotion program for inner-city Vietnamese preschool children in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The project comprised of four general phases: information-gathering, project planning, project implementation, and project evaluation. The information-gathering phase of the project demonstrated extensive tooth decay in young children, bottle use during the day and during sleep-time long past recommended weaning age, and a belief of many parents that primary teeth were not important. Based on this information, the project planning committee designed a program that featured one-to-one counseling supported by community-wide activities. A Vietnamese lay health counselor provided counseling to mothers with telephone follow-up that coincided with scheduled infant immunization visits to a twice-monthly Child Health Clinic for Vietnamese families. At all the follow-up assessment clinics scheduled over the 7-year duration of this continuing project, mothers who had had more than one counseling visit reported significantly less use of sleep-time and daytime bottles for their children, and their children demonstrated significantly reduced prevalence of caries compared to similarly aged children at baseline. One-to-one counseling with regular follow-up provided by a lay person of similar background and culture to the participants is an effective way to facilitate adoption of healthy behaviors and to improve oral health of children.

18 Background: ASCO 2012 Choosing Wisely recommends against serum tumor marker tests and advanced imaging for breast cancer survivors who are asymptomatic for recurrence. Our pilot aimed to measure and raise adherence to this recommendation through a patient video at regional community clinics. Methods: Eligibility for study included patients with 1+ long-term follow-up visit within 3 months of end of treatment in the pre- or post-intervention period: Clinic tumor registries were queried for stage I-IIIA breast cancer patients treated with curative intent. The intervention included 1) academic detailing for oncologists at a regular meeting and 2) a video about the recommendation shown to patients at end of active treatment. Surveillance data was manually abstracted. We define adherence as no asymptomatic tests in the first 13 months of surveillance. Results: Advanced imaging adherence was high before and after the intervention (99-100%). Tumor marker (TM) adherence is in the table. Six of seven providers with low (<60%) TM adherence before the intervention maintained low TM adherence after. One provider with low TM adherence and all 3 providers with moderate (60-90%) TM adherence increased to high TM adherence (>90%). TM adherence was better among patients who viewed the video (130 of 145, 90%) than those who did not (452 of 556, 81%) in the post-intervention period. The higher TM adherence among patients who viewed the video and the wide range in adherence among providers suggest that tumor marker use may be both patient- and provider-driven. Population characteristics may explain some of the variation in adherence. Conclusions: While adherence to recommendations regarding high-cost imaging was high, wide variation in tumor marker adherence among providers and high baseline adherence for advanced imaging suggests that interventions targeting surveillance testing may wish to focus primarily on tumor markers and provider outreach. [Table: see text]

Background This qualitative study is a sub-component of BETTER WISE, a comprehensive and structured approach that proactively addresses chronic disease prevention, screening, and cancer survivorship, including screening for poverty and addressing lifestyle risks for patients aged 40 to 65. Patients (n = 527) from 13 primary care clinics (urban, rural, and remote) in Alberta, Ontario, and Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada agreed to participate in the study and were invited to a one-hour prevention visit delivered by a Prevention Practitioner (PP) as part of BETTER WISE. We identified the key components of a BETTER WISE prevention visit based on patients’ and primary care providers’ perspectives. Methods Primary care providers (PPs, physicians and their staff) participated in 14 focus groups and 19 key informant interviews to share their perspectives on the BETTER WISE project. Of 527 patients who agreed to participate in the study and were invited for a BETTER WISE prevention visit with a PP, we received 356 patient feedback forms. We also collected field notes and memos and employed thematic analysis using a constant comparative method focusing on the BETTER WISE prevention visit. Results We identified four key themes related to a BETTER WISE prevention visit: 1) Creating a safe environment and building trust with patients: PPs provided sufficient time and a safe space for patients to share what was important to them, including their concerns related to poverty, alcohol consumption, and mental health, topics that were often not shared with physicians; 2) Providing personalized health education: PPs used the BETTER WISE tools to provide patients with a personalized overview of their health status and eligible screening; 3) Non-judgmental empowering of patients: Instead of directing patients on what to do, PPs evoked patients’ preferences and helped them to set goals (if desired); and 4) Integrating care for patients: PPs clarified information from patients’ charts and surveys with physicians and helped patients to navigate resources within and outside of the primary care team. Conclusions The results of this study underscore the importance of personalized, trusting, non-judgmental, and integrated relationships between primary care providers and patients to effectively address chronic disease prevention, screening, and cancer survivorship as demonstrated by the BETTER WISE prevention visits. Trial registration This qualitative study is a sub-component of the BETTER WISE pragmatic, cRCT, trial registration ISRCTN21333761 (date of registration 19/12/2016)