Survey study reveals frequent use of patient-reported outcome measures in pediatric oncology, highlighting administrative and training barriers that impede systematic clinical adoption.
Key Points
To evaluate the utilization patterns, perceived utility, and implementation barriers of patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) among pediatric oncology healthcare professionals in Australia.
Conducted a cross-sectional online survey of Australian pediatric oncology healthcare providers (N = 45) recruited via purposive and snowball sampling through oncology practice groups.
Overall, 83% of respondents (38 of 45) reported using PROMs, with 55.3% utilizing them for research and 52.6% using them to guide clinical care.
PROM administration occurred predominantly via paper (47%) compared to electronic formats (26%), and only 26.3% of users had PROMs integrated into medical records.
Among non-users, primary barriers included a lack of suitable PROMs (85.7%) and insufficient training (42.9%), while 18.4% of users reported uncertainty regarding PROM administration or interpretation.