Abstracts by keywords: ambulatory tumor patients
Against the background of the high number of cancer cases and increasing survival rates, the quality of life of oncological patients is becoming increasingly important. As patients spend shorter periods of time in inpatient facilities, care is increasingly shifting to the outpatient healthcare sector. In the areas of oncological acute medicine as well as post-treatment and rehabilitation, needs-based patient care of varying quality is established and is often integrated into the respective medical treatment concepts. Problems often arise when oncological patients are discharged from inpatient care to outpatient care (Stiel et al. 2009). Both tumor patients and their relatives as well as oncology physicians criticize deficits in the outpatient care of chronically ill tumor patients with regard to adjuvant offers (Herschbach and Mandel 2011; Mehnert et al. 2012; Chambers et al. 2012; Mitchell et al. 2012). The range of support measures available to tumor patients varies locally; in large cities it is generally easier to find a contact point than in structurally weak, mostly rural areas (Stiel et al. 2009). At the same time, comprehensive care, i.e. supporting the patient on a psychological, social and physical level, is recommended for a more favorable course of the tumor disease (Ebbinghaus et al. 2009).