Virtual clinics for prostate cancer patients during the COVID-19 pandemic : patients’ and health care providers’ experiences

Abstract

The increasing incidence and prevalence of cancer patients has led many hospitals to set up virtual clinics as an effective way of accommodating the increased service demands at outpatients. Virtual clinics were introduced at Sir Anthony Mamo Oncology Centre, Malta as an emergency measure during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study the researcher will explore the patients’ and healthcare providers’ experiences with virtual clinics for prostate cancer patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the literature, virtual clinics are a safe alternative to face-to-face consultations. They are equivalent in clinical effectiveness and are more cost-effective. 647 patients with prostate cancer who had at least one virtual consultation between March 2020 and December 2020 were sent a postal questionnaire to explore their experiences. 369 patients returned the filled in questionnaire with 62.5% saying they preferred virtual clinics to face-to-face consultations. 61.4% of patients found them convenient, mainly because they saved on travel. Semi-structured interviews were held with twenty healthcare providers. These included providers in management levels, clinicians, nurses and ancillary staff. All healthcare providers had a positive experience with virtual clinics despite many of them reporting an increased workload. All healthcare providers thought that virtual clinics for prostate cancer patients should continue being conducted when the pandemic is over. Having a sensitive biochemical marker, PSA, means virtual consultations are equivalent in safety and clinical effectiveness as face-to-face consultations for prostate cancer. Virtual clinics need to be structured to improve the experience of both patients and healthcare providers.