Clinician perspectives on designing and implementing a hereditary cancer transition clinic

Early identification of hereditary cancer predisposition in adolescents and young adults represents a unique opportunity to target cancer prevention and improve survival in a population at risk for adverse health outcomes. However, adolescents and young adults face challenges unique to their stage of life that can undermine their transition from pediatric to adult healthcare and lead to interruptions in preventative care. The purpose of this study was to understand expert perspectives on factors relevant to designing and implementing a transition clinic for adolescents and young adults with hereditary cancer predisposition. We used qualitative methods informed by human-centered design and implementation science to identify implementation considerations rooted in clinician experience. To understand clinic design and clinician experience at Geisinger transition clinics, we conducted a contextual inquiry using clinic observations and follow-up interviews of clinicians. To learn about designing and implementing a transition program, we also conducted in-depth interviews with national transition experts actively involved in developing, implementing, or participating in transition clinics around the United States. The contextual inquiry resulted in three diagrams depicting the following common elements of transition clinics at our institution: relationship building with patients, care coordination, stepwise transition education, communication between providers, and a sustainable clinic home. Interviews were analyzed deductively using thematic analysis to learn clinician perspectives about program implementation specific to each domain of the RE-AIM theoretical framework: reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance.