Evaluating Patient Experience in a Multidisciplinary Breast Cancer Clinic: A Prospective Study

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Healthcare Management
• Patient Experience Research

Background:

• Multidisciplinary clinics (MDCs) integrate various specialists for comprehensive patient care during a single appointment.
• Breast cancer (BC) care often involves multiple specialists, making MDCs a relevant model for improving patient journeys.
• Understanding patient perspectives is crucial for optimizing the MDC model in oncology.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate patient experiences within breast cancer multidisciplinary clinics (BC MDCs).
• To identify key drivers of satisfaction and dissatisfaction among patients attending BC MDCs.
• To provide insights for enhancing the delivery of care in BC MDCs.

Main Methods:

• A survey was administered to 429 patients diagnosed with BC and seen in an MDC between November 2020 and November 2021.
• 116 patient respondents (27% participation rate) with representative demographics provided feedback on their MDC experience.
• Data analysis focused on patient-reported preparedness, satisfaction areas, and overall ratings.

Main Results:

• Most patients (67%) felt "somewhat prepared" for the BC MDC, with high ratings for convenience (89.3%) and efficiency (65.2%).
• Top satisfaction drivers included seeing multiple providers (80.4%), pre-visit communication (48.2%), and support system inclusion (38.4%).
• Key dissatisfiers were information volume (42.9%) and emotional distress (30.2%), despite 83% rating the overall experience as excellent.

Conclusions:

• Patients highly value the convenience, efficiency, and integrated provider access offered by BC MDCs.
• Involving patient support systems enhances the perceived value of the MDC model.
• Opportunities exist to improve BC MDC patient experience by mitigating information overload and addressing patient anxiety and stress.