Abstract
Abstract
Background:
Patient-reported outcome (PRO) measurement is crucial to assess the benefit of psychotherapeutic interventions. Is repeated assessment of psychometric self-report data possible, as inpatient palliative care patients suffer from physical and psychological symptoms? What is the self-perceived strain caused by the assessment?
Objective
The main objective of this study was to investigate the feasibility of a repeated comprehensive psychometric self-assessment of inpatient palliative care patients. Secondary objectives were the PROs of the psychometric assessment.
Design:
We conducted a prospective cohort study. Patients admitted to our palliative care unit (PCU) were reviewed for eligibility within 72 hours. They were asked for weekly self-reports regarding hope (HHI-D), well-being (FACIT-Sp), anxiety and depression (STADI), and quality of life (QoL; EORTC-QLQ-C-30 single item). The strain caused by the assessment was assessed by a numeric rating scale (0–10) and free comments.
Results:
Within 11 months, 219 patients were admitted to the PCU. In total, 92 patients were eligible. The most frequent exclusion criterion was “life expectancy <1 week.” A total of 60 patients participated at the first point of measurement. The mean of self-perceived strain (Likert scale 0–10) due to the assessment was 1.44 (SD 1.99) at T1. Twenty-four patients participated twice. Here we found increased scores for physical well-being and QoL.
Conclusion:
Repeated assessment of psychological conditions is feasible for 27.4% of inpatients at a German PCU. The most limiting factor is life expectancy of only days at admission to the PCU. However, the self-perceived strain is low.
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