Poster Presentation 2025 Joint Meeting of the COSA ASM and IPOS Congress

Promoting future state health equity: establishment of a Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Victorian Integrated Cancer Services Optimal Care Summit (126713)

Ashley Macleod 1 , Umbreen Hafeez 1 2 , Spira Stojanovik 1 , Francesca McGannon 1 , Helena Rodi 1 , Linda Nolte 1
  1. NEMICS, Austin Health, Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia
  2. Austin Health, Heidelberg, VICTORIA, Australia

Background

The Australian Cancer Plan and Victorian Cancer Plan aim to drive improvement in health equity for people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. Equity in cancer care includes improved access, care and outcomes for CALD communities. However, there is no CALD communities based Optimal Care Pathway or a comprehensive understanding of their patterns of cancer care, experience or outcomes.

This program of work aimed to improve the understanding of CALD communities’ cancer care priorities, experiences, and outcomes within Victoria. Additionally, this program aimed to inform CALD optimal cancer care indicators.

Methods

During 2023-2024, the North Eastern Melbourne Integrated Cancer Service (NEMICS) delivered analyses:

  1. Cancer care for CALD communities: CALD demographics, resources, and policy inclusion and priorities.
  2. Victorian cancer plan consultation: four non-English language community organisations online semi-structured interviews.
  3. Victorian cancer patient experience survey: quantitative and free text responses by those that identified as speaking a language other than English at home.
  4. Identifying variation in cancer care for CALD communities: Victorian Admitted Episode Dataset and statistically significant variations in admitted cancer care.

Findings

Victoria is the most CALD diverse state in Australia with 35% of the population born overseas and 33% speak a language other than English at home. CALD communities represent 25% of new cancer cases yet there is a lack of CALD identifiers within cancer datasets. Communities report issues including a lack of trust, health literacy, understanding of their cultural beliefs, ability to navigate the system, access to services and clinical trials, availability of information, and bilingual workforce. Patient experience findings include the need for improved communication, information, decision-making involvement, support services, and bilingual workforce. CALD patients were more likely to be diagnosed with cancer via the emergency department.

Conclusion

This program informed the development of the CALD Communities VICS Optimal Care Summits program and quality indicators.