Final published version
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - The Impact of COVID-19 on Clinical Nurse Specialists and Patients With Cancer
T2 - A Pan-Specialty Cross-sectional Survey
AU - Forster, Alice S
AU - Zylstra, Janine
AU - von Wagner, Christian
AU - Hirst, Yasemin
AU - Forster, Martin
AU - Walshe, Rebecca
AU - Kazzaz, Zainab
AU - Steptoe, Andrew
AU - Birchall, Martin
AU - Patani, Neill
PY - 2022/8/20
Y1 - 2022/8/20
N2 - PURPOSE/AIMS: Uptake and delivery of cancer services across the United Kingdom have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to understand the impact of the pandemic on the working practices of clinical nurse specialists and their patient interactions across different cancer specialties.DESIGN: We performed a cross-sectional survey exploring nurses' experiences of delivering care during the pandemic, as well as their perceptions of the concerns that cancer patients were experiencing.METHODS: Clinical nurse specialists working in London cancer services were invited to complete an online questionnaire. Nurses' experiences and their perceptions of patients' concerns were analyzed descriptively.RESULTS: Fifty-four nurses participated. Almost half had been redeployed to other clinical areas during the pandemic (n = 19). COVID-19 discussions added 5 to 10 minutes on average to most consultations, with nurses either working longer/unpaid hours (34%) or spending less time talking to patients about cancer (39%) to deal with this. Approximately 50% of nurses would have liked additional information and support from their hospital.CONCLUSIONS: Clinical nurse specialist time and resources have been stretched during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hospitals need to work with nursing staff to ensure the specific information needs of cancer patients are being met.
AB - PURPOSE/AIMS: Uptake and delivery of cancer services across the United Kingdom have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to understand the impact of the pandemic on the working practices of clinical nurse specialists and their patient interactions across different cancer specialties.DESIGN: We performed a cross-sectional survey exploring nurses' experiences of delivering care during the pandemic, as well as their perceptions of the concerns that cancer patients were experiencing.METHODS: Clinical nurse specialists working in London cancer services were invited to complete an online questionnaire. Nurses' experiences and their perceptions of patients' concerns were analyzed descriptively.RESULTS: Fifty-four nurses participated. Almost half had been redeployed to other clinical areas during the pandemic (n = 19). COVID-19 discussions added 5 to 10 minutes on average to most consultations, with nurses either working longer/unpaid hours (34%) or spending less time talking to patients about cancer (39%) to deal with this. Approximately 50% of nurses would have liked additional information and support from their hospital.CONCLUSIONS: Clinical nurse specialist time and resources have been stretched during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hospitals need to work with nursing staff to ensure the specific information needs of cancer patients are being met.
KW - COVID-19/epidemiology
KW - Cross-Sectional Studies
KW - Humans
KW - Neoplasms
KW - Nurse Clinicians
KW - Pandemics
U2 - 10.1097/NUR.0000000000000691
DO - 10.1097/NUR.0000000000000691
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 35984980
VL - 36
SP - 272
EP - 277
JO - Clinical nurse specialist CNS
JF - Clinical nurse specialist CNS
SN - 0887-6274
IS - 5
ER -