Table 3.
Distribution of Types of Patient-Perceived Problems with Care by Randomization Group and by Timing and Mode of Reporting
| Intervention Group | Control Group | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Problem Category | Baseline N=58 |
Telephone N=38 |
Follow -up N=23 |
Total N=60 |
Baseline N=53 |
Follow -up N=21 |
Total N=55 |
|
| Problems with tests, treatments, or procedures, including delays, denial of desired tests, overly aggressive or not sufficiently aggressive treatment, general disagreement with treatment; and unexpected complications. | 11 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 5 | 1 | 6 | |
| Insufficient, inaccurate information, poor explanations, delays in providing information | 3 | 6 | 0 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 6 | |
| Poor team communication including team members not communicating with each other, disagreements between team members, contradictory or conflicting information from different providers, and poor communication between teams or facilities. | 2 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 6 | |
| Poor manner, including cold, uncaring or insensitive demeanor | 4 | 2 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Problems with diagnosis, including delayed diagnosis and misdiagnosis | 4 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
| Lack of responsiveness, including provider or other team members not returning phone calls and lack of follow-up. | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Difficulty accessing providers including difficulty knowing how to contact a provider, not knowing who to contact, providers cancelling appointments or not available when promised. | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Other poor experience, including long wait time, absence of support resources. | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Administrative issues, including paperwork and insurance. | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Not enough time with provider, including feeling rushed or hurried. | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Complaints related to the facility, or equipment, includes quality, cleanliness, comfort, and atmosphere (e.g., of chemotherapy suite). | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| Financial costs, including co-payments. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Poor continuity of care, including undesired changes in providers | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| Location or distance to the facility. | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| Poor or insensitive delivery of diagnosis, including problems with manner, setting, persons involved, and timeliness. | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Table note: Categories are not mutually exclusive; that is, a single event could be coded in multiple categories. Counts for at follow-up and via telephone are based on newly reported issues only; i.e., a problem reported on the baseline questionnaire which was also described on the follow-up questionnaire was not included in the count of problems reported on follow-up because it had already been identified on baseline.