Perceived quality of care and its associated factors among Chinese patients with advanced cancer: findings from the APPROACH study in Beijing

• Published in: Supportive care in cancer Vol. 29; no. 3; pp. 1395 - 1401
• Main Authors: Ning, Xiaohong, Krishnan, Anirudh, Li, Xiaoyuan, Liu, Zhikai, Li, Jie, Dai, Xiaoyan, Ozdemir, Semra, Malhotra, Chetna, Finkelstein, Eric A., Teo, Irene
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01-03-2021; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Analysis; Beijing; Cancer; Cancer patients; China; Communication; Continuity of care; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Health care reform; Humans; Male; Medical care; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle Aged; Neoplasms - psychology; Neoplasms - therapy; Nursing; Nursing care; Nursing Research; Oncology; Oncology, Experimental; Original Article; Pain Medicine; Palliative care; Patient satisfaction; Patients; Physician patient relationships; Quality of care; Quality of Health Care - standards; Rehabilitation Medicine; Socioeconomic factors; Surveys; Surveys and Questionnaires; Young Adult; Beijing; China; Beijing China; Advanced cancer; Patient experiences; Nursing care; Physician communication; Quality of care; Care coordination
• ISSN: 0941-4355; 1433-7339
• DOI: 10.1007/s00520-020-05559-x

Purpose
Patient-perceived quality of care has become an increasingly important index within the healthcare setting. We examined patient-reported overall quality of care and patient experiences in three specific domains of care (physician communication, nursing care, and care coordination) in a sample of Chinese patients with advanced cancer.
Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted with stage IV cancer patients (
N
 = 202) who were recruited from a public, tertiary hospital in Beijing. Study participants completed surveys administered by a research assistant. Multivariable regression analysis was conducted to examine the extent to which patient demographic factors (age, gender, socioeconomic status), disease/treatment factors, and domain-specific care were associated with overall quality of care.
Results
A majority of patients reported overall quality of care scores that we were either excellent (23%) or very good (41%). Patients reported highest ratings in the domain of nursing care (
M
 = 87.57, SD = 31.05), followed by physician communication (
M
 = 68.93, SD = 32.30), and care coordination (
M
 = 66.79, SD = 25.17). Better perceived physician communication (
b
 = 0.17,
p
 < 0.01), care coordination (
b
 = 0.26,
p
 < 0.01), and higher socioeconomic status (
b
 = 11.30,
p
 < 0.05) were associated with higher overall quality of care.
Conclusions
A majority of patients with advanced cancer in this Chinese hospital reported positive overall quality of care. Physician communication and care coordination are potential areas to focus on to improve patient-reported overall quality of care. Understanding perceptions of care quality will allow opportunities to improve delivery of healthcare.