Reducing the prevalence of unmet needs for concrete services of patients with cancer. Evaluation of a computerized telephone outreach system.

A two-stage study was undertaken of outpatients with advanced cancer who were receiving chemotherapy. In Stage 1 of the study, their needs for practical services and the barriers to those needs being met were assessed. Based on these results, an intervention was designed to reduce the prevalence of patients' unmet needs. The intervention was an automated telephone needs assessment coupled with social worker follow-up. The efficacy of this intervention was evaluated using an independent sample in Stage 2 in an experimental trial. Patients in the experimental group (n = 109), who received three automated surveys, reported fewer unmet needs in a subsequent comprehensive assessment than those in the control group (n = 130). The computerized telephone outreach system proved to be a cost-effective and reliable method for the early identification of unmet patient needs soon after they emerge and efficient deployment of limited professional staff.