Patient Satisfaction with the Role of a Clinical Specialist Radiation Therapist in Palliative Care

Aim: To examine patient satisfaction with a Clinical Specialist Radiation Therapist (CSRT) in a palliative radiotherapy clinical environment. Materials and methods: A one-point dissemination design captured satisfaction scores from patients who did (n = 19) and did not (n = 14) receive palliative care from the CSRT. The ' Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire' included six common questions and four additional questions for patients seen by a CSRT. T-tests compared results from common questions and mean values, standard deviations were also calculated. Results: For questions ' I was told everything that I want to know about my condition' and 'I felt that the problem that I came with was sorted out properly', those who received care from the CSRT scored significantly (p< 0.05) higher than those that did not (p = 0, 033, 0.037). For CSRT-specific questions, 89% of participants felt the experience with the CSRT was excellent, 78% strongly agreed/agreed having a CSRT on the care team was important, and 89% of participants strongly agreed/agreed having a CSRT on the care team was important to patients' understanding of treatment. Findings: Patients receiving care from the CSRT had better understanding of treatment and an excellent experience with the CSRT. This interaction provided more opportunities to address patient questions/ concerns, thus alleviating patient anxiety, increasing satisfaction with care, and demonstrating how new roles can develop new models of care within the current healthcare system.