IJERPH, Vol. 21, Pages 215: A Critical Overview of the Construct of Supportive Care Need in the Cancer Literature: Definitions, Measures, Interventions and Future Directions for Research

IJERPH, Vol. 21, Pages 215: A Critical Overview of the Construct of Supportive Care Need in the Cancer Literature: Definitions, Measures, Interventions and Future Directions for Research International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health doi: 10.3390/ijerph21020215 Authors: Marco Miniotti Rossana Botto Giovanna Soro Alberto Olivero Paolo Leombruni The growing amount of evidence about the role of supportive care in enhancing cancer patients’ outcomes has made healthcare providers more sensitive to the need for support that they experience during cancer’s trajectory. However, the lack of a consensus in the definition of supportive care and lack of uniformity in the theoretical paradigm and measurement tools for unmet needs does not allow for defined guidelines for evidence-based best practices that are universally accepted. Contemporary cancer literature confirms that patients continue to report high levels of unmet supportive care needs and documents the low effectiveness of most of the interventions proposed to date. The aim of this critical review is to consolidate the conceptual understanding of the need for supportive care, providing definitions, areas of expertise and a careful overview of the measurement tools and intervention proposals developed to date. The possible reasons why the currently developed interventions do not seem to be able to meet the needs, and the issues for future research were discussed.
Source: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Review Source Type: research