Computerized Assessment for Patients With Cancer

The traditional procedure for cancer symptom and quality of life instrument administration is a paper questionnaire completed by the patient or research participant. The use of standardized, patient report instruments as routine assessment in clinical cancer care has been promoted, but infrequently reported and the utilization rate is low. Barriers to clinical use include the personnel cost of data collection, management of written questionnaires and the clinicians\' unfamiliarity with the nature of the queries and numerical scale scores. Web-based electronic technology now has been developed and tested for feasibility using touchscreen, notebook computers and the computerized assessment program, a screening assessment providing usable and easily interpreted graphic output to cancer clinicians. The purpose of this study is to design and evaluate the clinical integration of the web-based computerized assessment in a major, multi-disciplinary academic medical center and cancer center. Consecutive outpatients who are evaluated for cancer therapy in each of the 2 setting sites, the University of Washington Medical Center and the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, are able to communicate in English (or through one of the many interpreters available at the institutions), and are competent to understand the study information and give informed consent will be invited to participate. Clinicians caring for the patients in the sample will be invited to participate in evaluating the organizational impact. We will compare the outcomes of conducting assessment in the usual practices and procedures to the outcomes of using the computerized assessment program: appropriateness of referrals, efficiency, and usability. The computerized assessment will be completed prior to each participant\'s visit with the clinician, conducted at the first clinic visit, during the 4-6th week of treatment and again at a 30 day follow up visit. Graphical output will be immediately available to clinicians. Descriptive, comparative statistics will be used to evaluate the impact of the screening and longitudinal assessments.