Almost half of cancer patients on the Isle of Wight say they needed more help and support from health and social services while undergoing treatment.
Patients aged 16 and over, who underwent cancer-related treatment with the Isle of Wight NHS Trust between April and June 2017, were asked about their care as part of this year’s National Cancer Patient Experience Survey.
The survey, which is carried out annually by Quality Health on behalf of NHS England, monitors patients’ impressions of their diagnosis, treatment, and aftercare.
Improvement of previous year
It showed experiences of cancer patients across England were “generally very positive”, with patients giving an average rating of 8.8 out of ten for their overall care.
For the Isle of Wight, this figure was 8.83, an improvement on the previous year.
Concern about care in the home
However, the results raised concerns that experiences of care provided in the home by health and social services were less positive than care received in hospitals.
Some 52% of patients at the Isle of Wight NHS Trust answered ‘yes, completely’ when asked if they had been given enough support from health and social services, such as home visits by nurses and physiotherapy.
The results were worse after patients had finished their treatment compared to while they were still undergoing it – just 39% of the former said they had enough support, compared to 60% of the latter.
Post-treatment support “consistently identified” in need of improvement
Cancer Support UK, which provides practical and emotional help for people with cancer, said post-treatment support had been “consistently identified” as an area in need of improvement.
Chief executive Gemma Holding said:
“Inequalities in health and well-being provision across the UK mean that some patients – based on where they live – have better access to, and receive higher quality health care than others.
“We know that when people’s official treatment ends, rather than feeling better, this is often when people can feel at their worst.
“However, once physical treatment ends, cancer patients are often discharged with no support to manage the ongoing emotional challenges.
“Psychological support for people with cancer is essential to recovery, during and after treatment.”
Post-treatment support should be ‘urgently addressed’
According to the charity, cancer patients are five times more likely to be at an increased risk of suicide. Post-treatment support options across the country need to be “urgently addressed”, it added.
The only England-wide figure that saw a drop in this year’s survey concerned support provided by GPs.
Four in ten patients in England said they didn’t think staff at their local practice had done everything they could to support them while they were going through treatment, or that they had only done so to some extent.
On nearly half of the questions in the survey, over 80% of respondents gave a positive response.
Article shared by Data Reporter as part of OnTheWight’s collaboration with Press Association and Urbs Media
