Abstract
Purpose
Cancer survivors with multiple chronic conditions experience significant challenges managing their health. The six core functions of patient-centered communication (PCC)—fostering healing relationships, exchanging information, responding to emotions, managing uncertainty, making decisions, and enabling patient self-management—represent a central component to facilitating a survivor’s confidence to manage their health that has not been investigated in cancer survivors with multiple chronic conditions.
Method
Nationally representative data across two iterations of the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) were merged with combined replicate weights using the jackknife replication method. Adjusted linear regression examined the association between PCC and health self-efficacy in a sample of breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer survivors and by multiple chronic conditions.
Results
53.9% reported that providers did not always respond to their emotions and 48.9% reported that they could not always rely on their providers to help them manage uncertainty. In the adjusted linear regression models, there was a significant positive association between PCC and health self-efficacy (β = 0.2, p = 0.01) for the entire sample. However, the association between PCC and health self-efficacy was attenuated in cancer survivors with multiple chronic conditions (β = 0.1, p = 0.53).
Conclusion
PCC alone is not enough to improve a cancer survivor’s confidence in their ability to manage their health in the presence of multiple chronic conditions.
Implications for Cancer Survivors
Cancer survivors with multiple chronic conditions need ongoing support, in addition to PCC, that render them prepared to manage their health after cancer.
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Acknowledgments
This research was made possible by the UTHealth School of Public Health Cancer Education and Career Development Program, the Center for Energy Balance in Cancer Prevention and Survivorship, and the Duncan Family Institute for Cancer Prevention and Risk Assessment.
Funding
This study was financially supported by the UTHealth School of Public Health Cancer Education and Career Development Program (NCI Grant T32 CA057712) and by the National Institutes of Health through MD Anderson’s Cancer Center Support Grant (NCI Grant P30 CA016672).
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Austin, J.D., Robertson, M.C., Shay, L.A. et al. Implications for patient-provider communication and health self-efficacy among cancer survivors with multiple chronic conditions: results from the Health Information National Trends Survey. J Cancer Surviv 13, 663–672 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11764-019-00785-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11764-019-00785-7