Kroenke, K., Theobald, D., Wu, J., Norton, K., Morrison, G., Carpenter, J., & Tu, W. (2010). Effect of telecare management on pain and depression in patients with cancer: A randomized trial. JAMA, 304, 163–171.
To determine whether centralized telephone-based care management and automated symptom monitoring can reduce depression and pain in patients with cancer
Participants in the intervention group received centralized telecare management, conducted by a nurse-physician specialist team, and automated home-based symptom monitoring by means of interactive voice recording or Internet. The control group received usual care. Data were collected at baseline and at months 1, 3, 6, and 12.
Random controlled trial with double blinding, with stratified randomization by symptom type (pain only, depression only, or both pain and depression)
The intervention may be effective at reducing pain and depression. The intervention proved to be a feasible care approach for geographically dispersed urban and rural oncology practices.
Lack of control over type of cancer treatment and over the time lapse since treatment might have affected study findings.
Cost will be involved in training the care manager and in hiring trained personnel. The cost-effectiveness of the collaborative care model needs to be further examined. Studies show mixed results regarding effect of by-telephone patient management; further work in this area is warranted. Use of technology may be a viable approach to ongoing patient support.