Using a Quality Improvement Model to Implement Distress Screening in a Community Cancer Setting

Area of Science:

• Oncology Nursing
• Quality Improvement Science
• Psychosocial Oncology

Background:

• Quality cancer care necessitates routine screening for psychosocial distress.
• This project focused on implementing distress screening at a community-based non-profit cancer support organization.
• The Cancer Support Community provides professionally led cancer support services.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement and evaluate a distress screening process in a community cancer setting.
• To assess the utility of CancerSupportSource (CSS) for identifying patient needs and facilitating referrals.
• To utilize the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) model for quality improvement in distress screening implementation.

Main Methods:

• An advanced practice oncology nurse guided staff in implementing distress screening.
• CancerSupportSource (CSS), a web-based tool, was used for screening in an interview format.
• The Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) methodology guided the implementation and evaluation process.

Main Results:

• Initial screening of 21 participants identified 13 at risk for depression using CSS.
• Over one year, 51 participants were screened, demonstrating increased implementation.
• Participants reported that distress screening facilitated open discussion of sensitive issues.

Conclusions:

• CSS effectively identified psychosocial and practical needs, enhancing referral processes.
• The PDSA model proved effective for implementing and sustaining distress screening.
• Distress screening improves the identification of patient needs and community resource utilization.