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Involvement, Information and Emotional Support to Cancer Patients with or without an Assigned Care Provider [PCC151]

Tuesday May 5, 2026 12:00 - 11:15 Poster Arena

Presenter: Helena Tufvesson Stiller

Track: Poster

Patient-reported experience measures (PREMs) represent the patient’s voice and offer a way to evaluate continuity of care. We used PREMs to investigate the impact of having an assigned care provider on experienced involvement, information, and emotional support in patients recently diagnosed with cancer. We analyzed data from a nation-wide survey conducted in patients diagnosed with cancer 6-10 weeks earlier during 2018-2022. The survey covered 28 different types of cancers. An invitation to answer a web questionnaire was sent by regular mail. A reminder and a paper questionnaire were mailed to the patients if no response was recorded after 3 weeks. Answers were grouped and compared using Pearson’s chi-square test. A total of 89% of respondents reported having an assigned care provider. These individuals reported higher levels of involvement, information and emotional support compared to individuals who did not have an assigned care provider. Physicians, contact nurses and other health care staff as assigned care provider were associated with over 80% positive responses in respect of patient involvement and information, whereas patients with no assigned care provider reported only 70 % positive responses in these areas (p<0.001). Only 46% of patients with no assigned care provider were positive to the provided emotional support compared to 69-80% for those with an assigned care provider (p< 0.001). The profession of the care provider had little impact. An assigned care provider is important for maintaining continuity of care. This should be encouraged in cancer care as it leads to better patient experience across all investigated domains.  The widely spread use of contact nurses in cancer care in Sweden provides a solid ground for such continuity. The continuous use of PREMs captures these aspects and promotes more people-centered health care practices.
Language

English

Conference

GCPCC

GCPCC Code

PCC151

Lecturers

Helena Tufvesson Stiller Presenter

Helena Tufvesson Stiller