Objectives and settings Advances in genomics, targeted therapies and immunotherapies allowed indubitable progress in cancer care and treatment. At the same time, the delivery of high quality care has become more complex and prone to fragmentation. Among criteria used internationally for health care quality improvement, patient satisfaction plays an important role. This multi-national cross-sectional study conducted within the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Group (EORTC QLG) assessed sociodemographic and clinical determinants of satisfaction with cancer care in patients enrolled from hospital inpatient and outpatient settings.
Participants and measures 690 consecutive patients with any cancer type or stage including 558 outpatients, were approached between October 2019 and October 2023 in 12 countries (20 cancer centres) from Asia, Europe, Middle East and South America. Among them, 675 (98%) and 521 (93%) completed the EORTC PATSAT-C33, and the OUT-PATSAT71, respectively. Multi-level analyses were performed accounting for institutional differences on satisfaction with care.
Main results Patients without comorbidity were significantly less satisfied with most care domains. Cancer care in day hospitals and treatment toxicities predicted less satisfaction with domains of doctors’ care and services organization. Patients with a respiratory tumour displayed higher satisfaction with doctors’ care. Higher self-reported quality of life strongly predicted higher satisfaction with all care domains. Not being married/with a partner and less travelling distance between home and hospital predicted less satisfaction, especially with regard to clinicians’ affective behaviours.
Conclusion Higher satisfaction with cancer care among patients with comorbidity underscores the importance of familiarizing patients with cancer care procedures and environment. Patients’ quality of life and treatment toxicities strongly predicted patient satisfaction. While cancer care is increasingly delivered in outpatient settings, lower satisfaction with care in day hospitals underscores the requirement of ensuring cancer care continuity and coordination while the patient is at home.