Concerns raised by people treated for head and neck cancer: a secondary analysis of audiotaped consultations in a health services follow-up clinic

Gerry Humphris*, Corrie Dicks, Simon N. Rogers, Anastastios Kanatas, Derek Lowe, Calum T. McHale

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Purpose People treated for head and neck cancer (HNC) face various barriers in communicating concerns with consultants. Our aim was to investigate the number of concerns raised between patients using the Patient Concerns Inventory (PCI) and those who did not. The PCI is a 57-item prompt list used in routine HNC follow-up clinics. Additionally, we aimed to examine whether who initiated the concerns differed between groups and the factors that may predict this initiation.

Methods  Secondary data analysis included 67 participants across 15 HNC consultants from specialist cancer centres in Liverpool and Leeds. Seven consultants utilised the PCI and eight did not, assigned by preferential and random assignment.

Results  Patients in the PCI group raised on average 2.5 more concerns than patients in the non-PCI group (p < .001). There was no significant relationship between group and who initiated the first concern (p = .28). A mixed-effects logistic regression was found to significantly predict who initiated the first concern in consultations (p < .05).

Discussion  The number of concerns raised by patients increased when the PCI was introduced pre-HNC consultation. A number of factors were shown to predict the number of concerns raised in consultations by both patient and consultant. As concerns may not be raised further following the concern mentioned, we propose that the discussion of concerns needs to be maintained by the clinician throughout the consultation and not solely at the start.

Conclusion  The PCI promoted the sharing of concerns in follow-up consultations between patient and consultant.
Original languageEnglish
Article number608
Number of pages9
JournalSupportive Care in Cancer
Volume31
Issue number10
Early online date4 Oct 2023
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2023

Keywords

  • Prompt sheets
  • Oncology
  • Communication
  • Psychological intervention
  • Coding transcripts
  • Multi-level modelling

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