ABSTRACT
Supporting patients’ decision making of whether to continue chemotherapy as the disease stage progresses poses a significant challenge in cancer nursing. This study aimed to investigate outpatient chemotherapy unit nurses’ perspectives on reconsidering treatment continuation, and their subsequent actions. In total, 14 nurses participated in focus group interviews, and the interview content was analyzed using content analysis methods. The nurses’ perspectives on determining when to reconsider treatment continuation were grouped into four categories, including “respecting the patient’s desired way of life,” and “maintaining the patient’s quality of life and ability to lead their daily life as desired.” Additionally, three categories of subsequent actions were identified, such as “engaging in discussions with patients to plan future treatment aligned with their desired way of life” and “facilitating cooperation among nurses to ensure timely intervention for treatment discontinuation.” The outpatient chemotherapy unit nurses provided daily nursing care from a clinical ethics perspective, focusing on respecting patients’ desired ways of life. They also valued collaborative efforts among medical staff to enable timely interventions.
ABSTRACT
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to clarify the factors related to the content of consultation in the cancer nursing outpatient department of Gunma University Hospital. Method: A retrospective survey was conducted with 1084 cases, excluding the unknown cases, from 1308 consultations in FY2019. Survey items included age, gender, consulter, number of uses, treatment status, consultation content, etc. We conducted χ2 tests, and binomial logistic regression analysis between the content of the consultation and the attributes of the user. Results: The treatment-related content was associated with the following factors: 70s or older, family/relatives only, presence of recurrence/metastasis, first use, pre-treatment, urinary organs, uterine/ovary, and unknown primary. The body-related content was associated with the following factors: under treatment, post-treatment, no recurrence/metastasis, and digestive organs. The mental health-related content was associated with 30s or younger, 40s–60s, patient only, and second time or more. The social aspects-related content was associated with the following factors: patient only, family/relatives only, no recurrence/metastasis, and breast. Conclusion: The results reveal that associated factors differ by consultation content. These findings can be used to prepare for consultation based on the relevant associated factors.