title: Assessment of a brain-tumour-specific Patient Concerns Inventory in the neuro-oncology clinic.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Brain tumour patients may struggle to express their concerns in the outpatient clinic, creating a physician-focused rather than a shared agenda. We created a simple, practical brain-tumour-specific holistic needs assessment (HNA) tool for use in the neuro-oncology outpatient clinic.
  
  
  METHODS
  We posted the brain tumour Patient Concerns Inventory (PCI) to a consecutive sample of adult brain tumour attendees to a neuro-oncology outpatient clinic. Participants brought the completed PCI to their clinic consultation. Patients and staff provided feedback.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy seven patients were eligible and 53 participated (response rate = 68%). The PCI captured many problems absent from general cancer checklists. The five most frequent concerns were fatigue, fear of tumour coming back, memory, concentration, and low mood. Respondents used the PCI to formulate 105 specific questions, usually about the meaning of physical or psychological symptoms. Patients and staff found the PCI to be useful, and satisfaction with the instrument was high.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study demonstrates the clinical utility of the brain tumour PCI in a neuro-oncology clinic. The combination of a brain-tumour-specific concerns checklist and an intervention to focus patient agenda creates a simple and efficient HNA tool.
authors.affiliation: Edinburgh Centre for Neuro-Oncology, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK, EH4 2XU, a.rooney@nhs.net.
authors.forename: Alasdair G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Rooney
authors.forename: Anouk
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Netten
authors.forename: Shanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: McNamara
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Erridge
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Peoples
authors.forename: Ian
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Whittle
authors.forename: Belinda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hacking
authors.forename: Robin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Grant
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000451:nursing / Q000523:psychology*; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020380:Needs Assessment; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult