Table 1.

Items included in final IRT-specified clinical dimensions of CPES

Clinical dimension	Item number	Item description
1 Experience of pre-diagnosis care	5	Beforehand, did you have all the information you needed about your test?
	7	Were the results of the test explained in a way you could understand?
	9	How do you feel about the way you were told you had cancer?
	11	When you were told you had cancer, were you given written information about the type of cancer you had?
2 Experience of receiving diagnosis and treatment information	13	Were the possible side effects of treatment(s) explained to you in a way you could understand?
	14	Were you offered practical advice and support in dealing with the side effects of your treatment(s)?
	16	Were you involved as much as you wanted to be in decisions about your care and treatment?
	26	After the operation, did a member of staff explain how it had gone in a way you could understand?
	49	Did the doctors or nurses give your family or someone close to you all the information they needed to help care for you at home?
3 Experience of clinical staff support	18	How easy or difficult has it been for you to contact your Clinical Nurse Specialist?
	19	When you have had important questions to ask your Clinical Nurse Specialist, how often have you got answers you could understand?
	20	Did hospital staff give you information about support or self-help groups for people with cancer?
	22	Did hospital staff give you information about how to get financial help or any benefits you might be entitled to?
	41	While you were being treated as an outpatient or day case, did you find someone on the hospital staff to talk to about your worries and fears?
4 Experience of clinical staff support as an inpatient	30	If your family or someone else close to you wanted to talk to a doctor, were they able to?
	35	During your hospital visit, did you find someone on the hospital staff to talk to about your worries and fears?
	36	Did the hospital staff do everything they could to help control your pain?

Items numbered according to CPES wave 5. Overall experience of care pathway based on responses to all clinical dimensions