Distress and psychosocial support seeking: A comparison of rural and metropolitan oncology patient experiences.

Martin, M; Rice, K; Murray, CV; Rock, AJ; Usher, KJ

Distress and psychosocial support seeking: A comparison of rural and metropolitan oncology patient experiences.

Martin, M Rice, K Murray, CV Rock, AJ Usher, KJ

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Publisher:: Wiley
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Aust J Rural Health, 2023
Issue Date:: 2023-11-05

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Martin, M
dc.contributor.author	Rice, K
dc.contributor.author	Murray, CV
dc.contributor.author	Rock, AJ
dc.contributor.author	Usher, KJ
dc.date.accessioned	2024-02-12T23:32:26Z
dc.date.available	2023-10-15
dc.date.available	2024-02-12T23:32:26Z
dc.date.issued	2023-11-05
dc.identifier.citation	Aust J Rural Health, 2023
dc.identifier.issn	1038-5282
dc.identifier.issn	1440-1584
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/175606
dc.description.abstract	INTRODUCTION: Prevalence of distress in cancer patients is established at approximately 50%, yet uptake of psychosocial support is minimal. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to understand why clinically distressed oncology patients choose not to access psychosocial support, including whether this differs by geographic location. It also aimed to determine the proportion of rural and metropolitan patients experiencing clinical levels of distress, and of these, the proportion who do not wish to access support. DESIGN: The study used a cross-sectional design. Two hundred and ninety-eight Australian cancer patients completed an online survey, including the Distress Thermometer and open-ended questions about reasons for declining support. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were used to analyse the data. FINDINGS: More than half (56%) of participants reported experiencing clinically significant levels of distress. Of these, almost half (47%) declined psychosocial support. Content analysis of reasons for declining psychosocial support resulted in six main concepts: I don't need support; I'm using personal resources to cope; negative perceptions and attitudes; life doesn't stop for cancer; I'm focussed on fighting cancer; and systemic barriers. Rural cancer patients most often indicated using personal resources to cope, while metropolitan participants most commonly indicated not needing support. A range of subconcepts were also identified. Perceiving distress as manageable or transient was almost exclusively reported by metropolitan participants, while stigma was almost exclusively reported by rural participants. DISCUSSION: The findings provided greater depth of insight into reasons cancer patients decline psychosocial support and identified several qualitative differences in the reasons provided by metropolitan and rural patients. Recommendations are provided for clinicians, in particular for clinicians who work with rural cancer patients and their supporters. CONCLUSION: These findings can inform equitable resourcing of psychosocial support in rural areas and the adaptation of psychosocial interventions to be more flexible and responsive to individual needs. This may help increase patient uptake of support, particularly in rural areas.
dc.format	Print-Electronic
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	Wiley
dc.relation.ispartof	Aust J Rural Health
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1111/ajr.13058
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess
dc.subject	11 Medical and Health Sciences, 16 Studies in Human Society
dc.subject.classification	32 Biomedical and clinical sciences
dc.subject.classification	42 Health sciences
dc.title	Distress and psychosocial support seeking: A comparison of rural and metropolitan oncology patient experiences.
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.location.activity	Australia
utslib.for	11 Medical and Health Sciences
utslib.for	16 Studies in Human Society
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access	*
dc.date.updated	2024-02-12T23:32:25Z
pubs.publication-status	Published online

Abstract:

INTRODUCTION: Prevalence of distress in cancer patients is established at approximately 50%, yet uptake of psychosocial support is minimal. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to understand why clinically distressed oncology patients choose not to access psychosocial support, including whether this differs by geographic location. It also aimed to determine the proportion of rural and metropolitan patients experiencing clinical levels of distress, and of these, the proportion who do not wish to access support. DESIGN: The study used a cross-sectional design. Two hundred and ninety-eight Australian cancer patients completed an online survey, including the Distress Thermometer and open-ended questions about reasons for declining support. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were used to analyse the data. FINDINGS: More than half (56%) of participants reported experiencing clinically significant levels of distress. Of these, almost half (47%) declined psychosocial support. Content analysis of reasons for declining psychosocial support resulted in six main concepts: I don't need support; I'm using personal resources to cope; negative perceptions and attitudes; life doesn't stop for cancer; I'm focussed on fighting cancer; and systemic barriers. Rural cancer patients most often indicated using personal resources to cope, while metropolitan participants most commonly indicated not needing support. A range of subconcepts were also identified. Perceiving distress as manageable or transient was almost exclusively reported by metropolitan participants, while stigma was almost exclusively reported by rural participants. DISCUSSION: The findings provided greater depth of insight into reasons cancer patients decline psychosocial support and identified several qualitative differences in the reasons provided by metropolitan and rural patients. Recommendations are provided for clinicians, in particular for clinicians who work with rural cancer patients and their supporters. CONCLUSION: These findings can inform equitable resourcing of psychosocial support in rural areas and the adaptation of psychosocial interventions to be more flexible and responsive to individual needs. This may help increase patient uptake of support, particularly in rural areas.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/175606