Quality Care 2019: Web-Based Survey of Patient Engagement Among Breast Cancer Survivors
Posted: Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Personal and demographic factors such as social support and education level as well as survivorship variables such as having a breast cancer survivorship plan may be important elements in determining patient engagement among breast cancer survivors, according to the results of a Web-based survey presented at the 2019 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Quality Care Symposium in San Diego (Abstract 223). The survey findings demonstrate the importance of understanding the circumstances that influence a patient’s engagement in survivorship care and thus being more prepared to self-manage therapy after breast cancer, observed Kathryn Elizabeth Post, PhD, of Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston.
“Findings may provide insight as to which survivors may be ready to engage in [survivorship care] and those who may need more resources and support,” Dr. Post concluded.
In this report, patients were recruited through Dr. Susan Love’s Army of Women Research Foundation and the website Craigslist. Ultimately, 303 patients participated in a cross-sectional, Web-based national survey that assessed personal and demographic factors, as well as survivorship variables such as health-related quality of life, fear of cancer recurrence, cancer health literacy, and patient activation. The patient population surveyed was predominantly white and non-Hispanic.
Dr. Post found that patient engagement correlated with 13 predictors, with 10 factors resulting in significant analysis of variance relationships with patient activation and knowing participation in change. When patient activation and knowing participation in change regression models were evaluated, health-related quality of life was a significant predictor of patient engagement (P ≤ .001). In the knowing participation in change regression model, social support and the level of education were observed as predictors (P ≤ .001), and receipt of a survivorship care plan offered a “unique” variance to the model (9.1%).
Disclosure: The study authors reported no conflicts of interest.
