Use of telehealth platforms for delivering supportive care to adults with primary brain tumors and their family caregivers: A systematic review

Abstract

Objective Telehealth platforms have potential utility for providing remote access to supportive care to people with brain tumour. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability and efficacy of delivering supportive care via telehealth platforms to adults with primary brain tumour and family caregivers. Methods A systematic search of PsycINFO, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, Scopus and Cochrane Library was conducted from 1980 to 1st June 2020 to identify eligible studies. Methodological quality was assessed by two independent reviewers. Results Seventeen articles, reporting on 16 studies, evaluated telephone‐based support (5 studies), videoconferencing (3 studies), web‐based programs and resources (7 studies) or combined use of videoconferencing and web‐based modules (1 study) to deliver supportive care remotely. Caregivers were involved in 31% of interventions. Mean rates of accrual (68%) and adherence (74%) were moderate, whereas acceptability or satisfaction for those completing the interventions was typically high (M satisfied or very satisfied = 81%). Adherence rates were generally higher and clinical gains were more evident for interventions involving real‐time interaction as opposed to self‐guided interventions. Conclusions Telehealth delivery of supportive care is feasible and acceptable to a high proportion of individuals with primary brain tumour and their caregivers. It is recommended that future research focuses on implementation outcomes, including factors influencing the uptake and sustainability of telehealth platforms in practice.

Reforming support systems of newly diagnosed brain cancer patients: a systematic review

“…Existing literature, including four previous reviews on support systems of brain tumour patients, have only focused on palliative care [26,28], interventions [45], telemedicine [46], non-medical therapies [28], and caregivers [28]. The current systematic review examined patient support services in the acute diagnostic period based on qualitative analysis of 14 studies, classified into three support domains: (1) format and level of information provided to patients [14,35,36,[39][40][41][42], (2) ongoing communication with patients [14,15,34,35,38,41,43,44,47] and (3) patient participation in treatment [5,38,[40][41][42][43][44].…”

Scoping the psychological support practices of Australian health professionals working with people with primary brain tumor and their families

“…[14][15][16] Psychological support following brain tumor encompasses assessment of cognitive, behavioral, and emotional functioning, education, individual and family counseling, psychotherapy, and rehabilitation. 12,17 Flexible and timely access to psychological support is essential given individuals' readiness and preferences for support change across the course of the illness. 18 Moreover, care pathways need to address psychological support needs from diagnosis through to long-term survivorship and/or end-of-life care.…”

The quality of life of regional and remote cancer caregivers in Australia

“…Distance and poor internet access can hinder in‐person and online delivery in these settings. Interventions delivered via the telephone are promising in terms of effectiveness and acceptability (Chi & Demiris, 2015; Ownsworth et al, 2021), however, combining multiple modes of contact could provide caregivers with both the practical and emotional support they require.…”