Usefulness of pharmacist-assisted screening and @entity146 referral program for outpatients with XXXX undergoing chemotherapy.

@entity1 @entity308 @entity146 @entity5 @entity2166
OBJECTIVE: @entity308 ( @entity308 ) and @entity2166 ( @entity2166 ) are common @entity146 in @entity5 @entity1 but are often overlooked in clinical oncology settings. We introduced a clinical screening program utilizing the Distress and Impact Thermometer (DIT) to identify @entity308 and @entity2166 in @entity5 outpatients receiving chemotherapy. This study assessed the usefulness of the screening program. METHODS: Pharmacists administered the DIT to consecutive @entity1 undergoing chemotherapy at an outpatient clinic. Psychiatric treatment was recommended to all the @entity1 with positive screening results. The proportion of @entity1 referred to the Psychiatric Service during the program period was then compared with that during a usual care period. RESULTS: Of the 520 @entity1 who started chemotherapy during the 6-month program period, 5.0% (26/520) were referred to the Psychiatric Service and 2.7% (15/520) were diagnosed as having @entity308 or @entity2166 . No statistically significant difference in the referral rates was observed between the two periods (2.7 vs 1.0%, p = 0.46). However, the period from the first chemotherapy treatment until the visit to the Psychiatric Service was significantly shorter during the program period than during the period of usual care (12.9  13.2 days vs 55.6  17.6 days, p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The proportion of @entity1 referred to the Psychiatric Service for the treatment of @entity308 or @entity2166 during the program period was not different from that during the usual care period. However, the program was useful for introducing @entity146 treatment at an earlier stage. Further modifications to the program to improve the referral rate are necessary.
