Open AccessLessons Learned: Feasibility of a Discussion Prompting Tool to Increase Fertility Risk Discussion Among Adolescent Oncology Families
Author(s) -
Devin Murphy,
Caprice Knapp,
Kelly K. Sawczyn,
Susan T. Vadaparampil,
Alice RhotonVlasak,
Gwendolyn P. Quinn
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
the qualitative report
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.335
H-Index - 35
ISSN - 2160-3715
DOI - 10.46743/2160-3715/2016.2446
Subject(s) - fertility preservation , fertility , forgetting , psychology , pediatric oncology , family medicine , qualitative research , oncology , medical education , medicine , gynecology , nursing , cancer , population , environmental health , sociology , social science , cognitive psychology
The purpose of this study was to explore the feasibility of distributing a prompting tool (stress egg) in order to increase discussions about fertility risk and preservation (FP) among female adolescent oncology patients, parents, and healthcare providers (HCP). 200 eggs were distributed to four pediatric oncology centers. Qualitative interviews were completed with healthcare staff (N=7) after 6 months of distribution to newly diagnosed female oncology patients ages 12-18. Interviews showed that the main barriers to distribution of the prompt were: forgetting to distribute the eggs; uncertainty about the significance of fertility; and uncertainty about fertility issues in general for female adolescent cancer patients. The scientific community must continually explore effective avenues of communication to ensure such information is received. The stress egg has potential to impact a cancer survivor’s outlook on future partnering, family life, and self-concept when used in conjunction with policy.