The Supportive Care Team (SCT) primarily aims to improve hospital cancer care for patients and families facing a life-threatening illness. From October 2005, The SCT started a consultation service. The role of the SCT is to assess severe symptoms (physical and psychiatric) and unattended needs (psychological, social, and spiritual), as well as to provide expert symptom management, psychosocial support, and coordinating services.
The SCT is an interdisciplinary team consisting of adequately trained physicians (palliative care specialists and psycho-oncologists), a certified nurse specialist, psychologists, pharmacy practitioners, national registered dietitians and social workers. The SCT communicates with clinicians, discusses needs in conferences, and refers patients and their families to needed services. The SCT consultation data are shown in the table. Interdisciplinary team conferences and SCT rounds are held every Wednesdays. In a conference, the assessment of patients including physical and psychological symptoms and social aspects, and the overall goals of care are discussed. The SCT also exchanges information about patients and families with the outpatients’ ward. From 2008, it jointly launched the multi-intervention regional palliative care program (OPTIM study) together with the palliative mobile team.
● A. Ogawa, H. Kinoshita, Y. Uchitomi ●
| Supportive Care Team consultation data (n = 560; january-december, 2008) | ||
| N (%) | ||
| Age | Mean ± SD (range) (yr) | 62.0 ± 12.0 (18-94) |
| Gender | (male/female) | 359 (64%) / 201 (36%) |
| Service | Palliative / Psycho-oncology | 206 / 418 |
| Cancer site | Lung | 139 (25%) |
| Head and Neck | 125 (22%) | |
| Esophagus | 51 (9%) | |
| Stomach | 41 (7%) | |
| Colon | 34 (6%) | |
| Stage | I / II / III / IV | 22 (4%)/ 23 (4%)/ 43 (8%)/ 218 (39%) |
| / recurrence / unknown | / 184 (33%) / 19 (3%) | |
| Performance status | 0/ 1/ 2/ 3/ 4 | 55 (10%)/ 101 (18%)/ 144 (26%)/ 175(31%)/ 77 (14%) |
| Actual symptoms (physical) | Pain | 333 (60%) |
| Appetite loss | 257 (46%) | |
| Fatigue | 163 (29%) | |
| Respiratory distress | 99 (18%) | |
| Psychiatric diagnosis | Delirium | 139 |
| Adjustment disorders | 83 | |
| Depression | 57 | |
| Dementia | 39 | |
| Outcome | Discharge/ Changing Hospital | 345 (62%)/ 14 (3%) |
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