Nurse-initiated Conversations for Early Integration of Palliative Care in Pediatric Oncology
Trial Parameters
Brief Summary
This study aims to develop and implement a pediatric palliative care (PPC) program. It is an open-label, randomized trial (2:1 randomization) in pediatric oncology department of Children's Hospital of Fudan University. The intervention group will receive Nurse-initiated Conversations for Early Integration of Palliative Care in Pediatric Oncology (NiCE). The control group will receive routine PPC (will be scheduled to meet with the PPC team only when participants themselves, their families, or the attending oncologist requested an appointment). The intervention will take 6 months.
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * Children within eight weeks of initial oncologic diagnosis or within eight weeks of relapse/recurrent disease diagnosis * Children speaking Chinese * Children's family caregivers accompanying the child in the hospital (only one family member is eligible to take this role under current hospital policy) * Children's family caregivers speaking Chinese * Health care providers who are taking care of the eligible children, including but not limited to physicians, nurses, and social workers Exclusion Criteria: \- Children who, in the opinion of their physician, are not capable mentally or verbally of participating in the survey or interview