ArticleSupportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer2015
The role of volunteers at an outpatient cancer center: how do volunteers enhance the patient experience?
Article in Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
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- "It Can Be Quite Daunting": Promoting Mental Health Service Use for Vulnerable Young People.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Exploring motivations of peer supporters for caregivers of patients with hematological malignancies-a qualitative study.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025Article
- Perspectives of cancer consumer representatives on their involvement in healthcare service improvement: a qualitative study.BMC health services research · 2024Article
- Cancer patients' needs for volunteer services during Covid-19: a mixed-method exploratory study.BMC psychology · 2023Article
- A Family-Centered Intervention to Monitor Children's Development in a Pediatric Outpatient Setting: Design and Feasibility Testing.Frontiers in health services · 2021Article
- Critical patient insights from the same-day feedback programme at Stanford Health Care.BMJ open quality · 2020Article
- Research articles on volunteering in biomedical journals: a MEDLINE-based bibliometric analysis.The Journal of international medical research · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeThe purpose of this study is to describe the role volunteers play in the cancer patient experience at the BC Cancer Agency, Vancouver Island Centre, and opportunities to enhance the services they provide.
methodsUsing an action research approach, methodological triangulation of data from the viewpoints of patients, volunteers, and staff was used to first understand the unmet needs of patients and then how volunteers are able to address some of those needs.
resultsPatients, volunteers, and staff all agreed that volunteers enhance the patient experience, specifically by working with professionals to meet patients' emotional, practical, and informational needs. Physical needs were indirectly met by guiding patients to the appropriate personnel. Additionally, this study elucidated important organizational information such as gaps in care, how to screen for volunteers, and perceptions among interdisciplinary staff about the role of volunteers in cancer care.
conclusionsVolunteers provide an essential complement to the professional healthcare team by tending to the non-medical needs of patients, thereby enhancing the patient experience. By better understanding the role and resulting benefits of involving volunteers in cancer care, healthcare professionals and volunteers can work synergistically to improve the quality of care for patients.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.