Distress Screening Provides Timely Detection of Mental Health Concerns
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Screening tools such as HRSN, distress, PHQ-9, and GAD-7 enable early identification of potential care barriers and mental health challenges. These tools help reduce stigma by encouraging open communication between our patients and the care team about psychosocial concerns. This approach supports timely intervention, helps prevent future crises, and improves overall healthcare outcomes.
The complexity of a cancer diagnosis can lead to tremendous psychological distress, threatening a patient’s mental well-being. Although conversations about mental health are advancing, there’s a critical need to recognize cancer as a risk factor for anxiety and depression.
That’s why, at Cancer Support Community (CSC), we’ve created a comprehensive digital distress screening and referral platform to proactively identify mental health needs and support individuals throughout the cancer journey.
The severity of a mental health disorder is not something to be neglected. Studies have found a two-fold risk among cancer patients of dying by suicide (Heinrich, et al).
In a study observing 465,000 cancer patients across 26 cancer types, researchers found that treatments involving surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy were the biggest risk factors for developing a mental health disorder (Chang, et al).
These research findings support the need to develop comprehensive care and mental health support for cancer patients.
The Important Role of Distress Screening Tools
Preventive measures are vital in both disease management and mental health treatment. Providing patients with mental health support and resources before the onset or progression of a mental health disorder lessens the burden of cancer.
Distress screening tools are at the forefront of engineering comprehensive health services for cancer patients. CSC works to deliver validated mental health screening assessments that analyze the level of distress, depression, and anxiety in cancer patients in order to administer the best possible care.
CSC’s Cancer Support Source (CSS) is a validated psychosocial distress screener that identifies the risk for clinical depression and anxiety. The screener:
- Underwent intensive research and testing to become a validated measure
- Fulfills many accreditation standards, including CoC standard 5.2 and QOPI standard 1.2
- Can help identify a patient’s individual areas of distress and unmet needs
Once the patient's needs are identified, they can be combined with MyCareReport’s resource allocation and referral system; the patients' concerns are met in a more streamlined approach.
Electronic screening platforms, such as the one provided by CSC, further enhance efficiency and consistency by minimizing manual errors and saving physician time. Additionally, these platforms convert screening results into quantifiable data, which is essential for reporting and ensuring adherence to care standards.
MyCareReport is CSC’s digital mental health assessment and referral platform, featuring CSS alongside other proprietary and open-source assessments. The platform captures valuable mental health screening data while simultaneously automating in-house referrals to clinicians and delivering personalized resources directly to patients.
MyCareReport is compatible with any EMR system, allowing for seamless integration into existing clinical workflows. Information flows securely between MyCareReport and the integrated EMR, ensuring a streamlined and efficient exchange of data. MyCareReport has been a transformative tool for oncology practices across North America.
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