Communicating a cancer diagnosis using a human centered design approach.

Abstract

229 Background: Anticipating and getting "the call" communicating a cancer diagnosis is reportedly one of the most stressful times in a person’s life. If not pre-scheduled patients are often in unfortunate locations, doing distractive activities and are with unsympathetic companions. Additionally, patients ask for a single point of contact, impactful resources, and immediate next steps and appointments scheduling. Methods: Pilot/Study: 120 breast cancer patients: Control group: 30 positive, 30 negative DX Test group: 30 positive, 30 negative DX Test approach: co-designed with 10 patients, 5 physicians and 5 staff. Interviews: 7 care team roles. Data collection: customized patient interview assessment tool. Steady State: sustaining work done. Conducted: January 2019 through December 2022. Evaluation Methods -11 tests: t-Tests, One-Way ANOVA, and Capability. Changes Made: call be at a pre-scheduled time delivered by ongoing point of contact offering immediate next steps and appointment scheduling offering meaningful support and resources delivered with deep empathy/compassion. Results: The project was highly successful based on the results it achieved. Results: Improved by 64% (original goal of 30%) the composite measure of care satisfaction of patients receiving a breast cancer diagnosis call in Kaiser Permanente Maui, Hawaii. Composite: 1) 61% improvement in “satisfaction with your circumstance”, 2) 63% improvement in “satisfaction with the conversation”, and 3) 70% improvement in “feeling supported” using a local measurement tool. Conclusions: The 64% improvement in the patients' experience for cancer diagnosis communication was accomplished by understanding the needs of the patients and care team, establishing new communication protocols and resources, and ensuring the process empowered patients. The study showed that both patients and care teams want a communication process that included the elements in the test approach. This project was deemed a Kaiser Permanente best practice and is in consideration for spread. Improved by 64% (goal was 30%) the composite measure of care satisfaction of patients receiving a breast cancer diagnosis call in Kaiser Permanente Maui, Hawaii. Breast Cancer Diagnosis Communication - Key Improvement Metrics: Control Group Test Group Outcome Measure: the composite measure improvement 64% of care satisfaction of patients receiving a DX Results Call 2.39 3.93 Composite Measure 1: 61% improvement in “satisfaction with your circumstance” 2.35 3.78 Composite Measure 2: 63% improvement in “satisfaction with the conversation” 2.50 4.07 Composite Measure 3: 70% improvement in “feeling supported” 2.33 3.95 Process Measure: the error rate over time had a statistically significant difference between the Control and Test groups 30.3 8.90 Balancing Measure: Negative result patients have a similar experience as the Positive result patients No significant difference No significant difference