[The advanced practice nurse in a supportive care department: The missing link?]

Abstract

Introduction: Cancer has become a chronic disease thanks to therapeutic evolutions and justifies the early integration of supportive care in the management. The Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) was created to respond to the increase in the number of patients followed in the long term. The objective of this study is to identify the place and expected missions of an APN within a multidisciplinary supportive care team.

Material and method: A qualitative study by semi-directed interview using a previously developed interview grid was carried out with 14 health professionals (doctors, nurses and health managers) working in a supportive care service in three Cancer Centres.

Results: The role expected by the participants is based on the optimisation of patients' follow-up, the integration of supportive care into the care pathway, the improvement of the relationship with the town, and the development of nursing leadership in the establishment. At the same time, the potential arrival of an APN as a change agent in a supportive care service is a source of fears.

Discussion: The APN seems to be a real link in the institutional organisations facilitating the link between the professionals of the institution and with the professionals of the territory. The identification of the origins of the fears expressed should enable work to be done to facilitate the integration of the APN into specific support care services, particularly for patients in palliative situations.

Keywords: Advanced Practice Nurse; Cancer; IPA; Patients’ follow-up; Place; Soins de support; Suivi de patients; Supportive care.