Patients' information coping styles influence the benefit of a survivorship care plan in the ROGY Care Trial: New insights for tailored delivery

Abstract

Background: In efforts to improve the implementation of survivorship care plans (SCPs), the authors assessed whether the impact of SCPs on patient-reported outcomes differed between patients with an information-seeking coping style (monitoring) versus those with an information-avoiding coping style (blunting).

Methods: In the Registration System Oncological Gynecology (ROGY) Care Trial, 12 hospitals in the Netherlands were randomized to deliver SCP care or usual care. All patients with newly diagnosed endometrial and ovarian cancer in the SCP care arm received an SCP that was generated automatically by their oncology provider through the web-based ROGY registration system. Outcomes (satisfaction with information provision and care, illness perceptions, and health care use) were measured directly after initial treatment and after 6, 12, and 24 months. Information coping style was measured at 12 months after initial treatment.

Results: Among patients who had a monitoring coping style (N = 123), those in the SCP care arm reported higher satisfaction with information provision (mean score: 73.9 vs 63.9, respectively; P = .04) and care (mean score: 74.5 vs 69.2, respectively; P = .03) compared with those in the usual care arm. Among patients who had a blunting coping style (N = 102), those in the SCP care arm reported a higher impact of the disease on life (mean score: 5.0 vs 4.5, respectively; P = .02) and a higher emotional impact of the disease (mean score: 5.4 vs 4.2, respectively; P = .01) compared with those in the usual care arm.

Conclusions: SCPs may be beneficial for patients who desire information about their disease, whereas SCPs may be less beneficial for patients who avoid medical information, suggesting a need for tailored SCP delivery to improve survivorship care.

Keywords: coping; gynecologic cancer; illness perception; information provision; patient satisfaction; survivorship care plan.

Figure 1

The mean values of trial outcomes stratified by trial arm and information coping style at 0, 6, 12, and 24 months are illustrated. Note that crude means are reported. Monitors are patients who have an information‐seeking coping style, and blunters are those who have an information‐avoiding coping style. Only outcomes that differed significantly between trial arms in either monitors or blunters are included. An asterisk indicates P < .05 in the overall intention‐to‐treat analysis. Detailed statistics are provided in Table 3. SCP indicates survivorship care plan.