- Title
- Do cancer helplines deliver benefits to people affected by cancer? A systematic review
- Creator
- Clinton-McHarg, Tara; Paul, Christine; Boyes, Allison; Rose, Shiho; Vallentine, Paula; O'Brien, Lorna
- Relation
- Patient Education and Counseling Vol. 97, Issue 3, p. 302-309
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2014.09.004
- Publisher
- Elsevier Ireland
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2014
- Description
- Objectives: To determine the: (1) proportion of studies that describe characteristics of helpline service delivery, compared to the proportion that report trials testing efficacy or effectiveness of helplines in changing user outcomes; (2) proportion of efficacy or effectiveness studies that meet EPOC criteria for methodological rigor; and (3) potential benefits of cancer helplines for people affected by cancer based on findings from rigorous efficacy or effectiveness trials. Methods: Electronic databases (Medline, PsycINFO, EMBASE and CINAHL) were searched to identify English-language studies describing original research published from 1991 to 2011. Results: Twenty-eight publications met the review inclusion criteria. From these studies, data on: the characteristics of cancer helpline users; call content; and user satisfaction, were extracted. The potential for helplines to improve the psychosocial outcomes of callers was examined for the three intervention trials. Conclusion: There is a lack of robust evidence regarding the level and types of benefits that cancer helplines may deliver to callers affected by cancer. Given increased emphasis on delivering best-practise supportive care, building the evidence base in this field may assist cancer helplines to increase their service uptake, reach, and benefit to callers. Practise implications: There is a need for more rigorous intervention-focussed studies in this field across a broader range of cancer populations. Future studies should focus on relevant patient-centred outcomes, such as improved knowledge and greater involvement in decision-making, while incorporating process measures to account for intervention fidelity and clinical performance.
- Subject
- cancer; counselling; helpline; information service; patient education; psychosocial support systems; systematic review
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1298210
- Identifier
- uon:19613
- Identifier
- ISSN:0738-3991
- Language
- eng
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