Closing the cancer care gap with a patient-reported nutrition screening: A retrospective analysis of a quality improvement project on an oncology ward (CCC study).

Background & Aims: Early identification of patients at risk for malnutrition followed by individualized nutrition interventions is a central step to the provision of appropriate nutrition care. However, a health care professional (HCP)-based nutrition screening is not always consistently integrated into routine care. Patient-reported (PR) nutrition screening could thus potentially alleviate the burden on the HCPs and contribute to a greater number of patients who are identified and treated for malnutrition.

Methods: In 2021 a Quality Improvement Project (QIP) at our out-patient oncology clinic was undertaken to implement the change from a HCP-based nutrition screening to a PR-screening. This was followed by a retrospective analysis in which the primary outcome measure was the rate of nutrition consultations initiated for patients undergoing cancer therapy.

Results: In total n = 1657 patient data sets derived from comparable time periods before and after the QIP were analyzed and compared. Both groups had a comparable mean age and gender distribution. The most common diagnosis in both groups was gastrointestinal tumors. The change in routine care from a HCP-based nutrition screening to a PR-screening led to a significant increase in nutrition consultation rates (RD = 19%; p < 0.001; 95% CI 14.4%-23.5%) and screening rates (RD = 30.5%; p < 0.001; 95% CI 26.2%-34.7%).

Conclusions: The change to PR-screening potentially facilitates an increase in nutrition screening rates. This in turn leads to an increased rate of patients identified at risk for malnutrition and thus referrals for nutrition consultations. Our findings indicate that a PR nutrition screening tool could play a role in closing the care gap and contribute to reducing rates of malnutrition among this population where screening is not consistently integrated into routine care.