Assessment of Unmet Supportive Care Needs of Vietnamese Cancer Patients after First-Time Hospital Discharge

Abstract

Objective: The research was conducted to identify and assess the unmet supportive care needs of patients with cancer after a first-time hospital discharge. Material and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study using the Cancer Survivors’ Unmet Need (the CaSUN). A total of 163 cancer patients of Danang Oncology hospital were invited to the study after they were discharged from the hospital for the first-time. Data was entered and analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Results: In total 68.7% of participants expressed at least one unmet supportive care need after a first-time hospital discharge. Specifically, 13.7% showed their unmet needs at a weak level, 31.3% had a moderate level and 23.7% a high level. However, the common unmet supportive care needs domain concerned Information and medical care (75.1%); Life perspective (70.8%); Emotions and relationships (64.2%) and Quality of life (63.6%). Conclusion: Most cancer patients indicated one or more unmet supportive care needs after first-time hospital discharge. This result will support improving healthcare service quality and raising awareness of nursing when providing care for cancer patients in the community.