Electronic patient self-assessment and management (SAM): a novel framework for cancer survivorship.
BACKGROUND
We propose a novel framework for management of cancer survivorship: electronic patient Self-Assessment and Management (SAM). SAM is a framework for transfer of information to and from patients in such a way as to increase both the patient's and the health care provider's understanding of the patient's progress, and to help ensure that patient care follows best practice.


METHODS
Patients who participate in the SAM system are contacted by email at regular intervals and asked to complete validated questionnaires online. Patient responses on these questionnaires are then analyzed in order to provide patients with real-time, online information about their progress and to provide them with tailored and standardized medical advice. Patient-level data from the questionnaires are ported in real time to the patient's health care provider to be uploaded to clinic notes. An initial version of SAM has been developed at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) for aiding the clinical management of patients after surgery for prostate cancer.


RESULTS
Pilot testing at MSKCC and UCSF suggests that implementation of SAM systems are feasible, with no major problems with compliance (> 70% response rate) or security.


CONCLUSIONS
SAM is a conceptually simple framework for passing information to and from patients in such a way as to increase both the patient's and the health care provider's understanding of the patient's progress, and to help ensure that patient care follows best practice.
Vickers
Andrew J
AJ
Salz
Talya
T
Basch
Ethan
E
Cooperberg
Matthew R
MR
Carroll
Peter R
PR
Tighe
Foss
F
Eastham
James
J
Rosen
Raymond C
RC
D003199:Computer Systems; D019468:Disease Management; D057286:Electronic Health Records; D034742:Electronic Mail; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D033181:Information Dissemination; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012648:Self Care; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017741:Survivors; D017216:Telemedicine