Opinions and strategies of Australian health professionals on tackling cancer‐related financial toxicity: A nationwide survey

Abstract

Aim: To understand the opinions and current practices of health professionals on the topic of addressing cancer-related financial toxicity among patients. Methods:A cross-sectional online survey was distributed through Australian clinical oncology professional organizations/networks. The multidisciplinary Clinical Oncology Society of Australia Financial Toxicity Working Group developed 25 questions relating to the frequency and comfort levels of patient-clinician discussions, opinions about their role, strategies used, and barriers to providing solutions for patients.Descriptive statistics were used and subgroup analyses were undertaken by occupational groups.Results: Two hundred and seventy-seven health professionals completed the survey.The majority were female (n = 213, 77%), worked in public facilities (200, 72%), and treated patients with varied cancer types across all of Australia. Most participants agreed that it was appropriate in their clinical role to discuss financial concerns and 126

Financial well‐being as a mediator of the relationship between multimorbidity and health‐related quality of life in people with cancer

“…Together with the findings of previous studies, the results of this study offer the insight that consideration of various potential risk and protective factors for health outcomes, including financial well‐being, is a necessary step for identifying people with cancer who may need frequent monitoring and assistance with financial counseling and chronic disease management as they transition from treatment to survivorship 4 . This implication is important because many interventions to address financial toxicity focus on the direct and indirect costs of cancer and its treatment, which are usually delivered by oncology social workers and cancer‐specific not‐for‐profit organizations 41,42 . First, financial navigation and counseling interventions continue to be developed in oncology, and it is important that such interventions also address financial concerns related to conditions other than cancer.…”

“…4 This implication is important because many interventions to address financial toxicity focus on the direct and indirect costs of cancer and its treatment, which are usually delivered by oncology social workers and cancer-specific not-for-profit organizations. 41,42 First, financial navigation and counseling interventions continue to be developed in oncology, and it is important that such interventions also address financial concerns related to conditions other than cancer. Second, healthcare policy makers should consider taking a more holistic approach than they currently take to enhance support for addressing the financial concerns of people with multimorbidity.…”

Availability and accessibility of services to address financial toxicity described by Australian lung cancer patients and healthcare professionals

“…Secondly, health professionals were acutely aware of potentially devastating consequences of financial toxicity yet reported rarely discussing this issue during consultations, in line with a recent Australian survey [ 29 ]. Insufficient resources or access to services may explain why financial concerns were not routinely discussed as part of clinical consultations; these are consistently reported barriers in literature [ 17 , 30 ].…”

Challenges and solutions to cancer-related financial toxicity according to Australian health professionals: qualitative results from a national survey

“…Given the survey was targeting busy HCPs, it was designed to be brief (10–15 min) to complete. The quantitative responses from this survey have been reported elsewhere [ 24 ]. Here, we report a qualitative evaluation of the 12 open-ended responses questions which are listed in Appendix A .…”