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Development and pilot testing of a psychoeducational intervention for oral cancer patients
Author(s) -
Katz Mark R.,
Irish Jonathan C.,
Devins Gerald M.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
psycho‐oncology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.41
H-Index - 137
eISSN - 1099-1611
pISSN - 1057-9249
DOI - 10.1002/pon.767
Subject(s) - psychoeducation , psychosocial , medicine , randomized controlled trial , distress , coping (psychology) , intervention (counseling) , anxiety , cancer , physical therapy , clinical psychology , psychiatry , surgery
Objective : Oral cancer elicits considerable distress in both the pre and post‐treatment periods. This paper details the development, validation and pilot‐testing of a psychoeducational intervention for oral cancer patients. Method : An educational booklet covering information about oral cancer and its treatment and effective coping strategies was developed by a multi‐disciplinary team. It was evaluated by patient focus groups and content/educational experts, delivered to subjects in pre and post‐operative presentations by a health educator, and pilot‐tested in a randomized controlled trial versus standard care. Results : Pilot data from 19 subjects (10 psychoeducation, nine standard care) indicates that the intervention is feasible and highly acceptable. At follow‐up the intervention group showed a gain in knowledge, less body image disturbance, lower anxiety and a trend toward higher wellbeing. Conclusion : This program, which is currently being evaluated in a larger RCT with extended follow‐up, should prove useful in reducing the psychosocial burden of oral cancer and its treatment. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.