Photo Credit: Doble-d

Quality improvement initiatives may improve coordinated care between family physicians and palliative care physicians for patients with cancer, according to a study published in JCO Oncology Practice. Stephanie Cheon, MD, and colleagues evaluated the use of a coordination toolkit distributed to family practices when palliative physicians received new oncologist referrals. The toolkit introduced the palliative care team, outlined collaboration options, and provided essential contact details for 24/7 support from palliative care physicians. Over a six-month period, Dr. Cheon and colleagues assessed the toolkit’s efficacy in 214 new consultations. Toolkit delivery was feasible in 90% of cases. Family physicians responded with collaborative care preferences at a rate of 86%. Responses indicated that most family physicians (78.9%) preferred ongoing consultations with palliative care physicians. However, 18.6% felt no further palliative care physician input was necessary or chose to manage primary palliative care independently after initial consultations. The results suggest that a coordination toolkit can protect the relationship between physicians and optimize specialist palliative care resource utilization for patients with complex needs.