Image
Recommendation
Key contact person/care coordinator
A key contact person, ideally a breast care nurse and/or a cancer care coordinator, should be agreed as soon as possible to support communication and coordination of patient-centred care. If appropriate, consultations may be via telephone and/or video conferencing calls, especially in regional or remote areas.
All women with a potential or known diagnosis of breast cancer should have access to a breast care nurse specialist for information and support at every stage of diagnosis, treatment and follow-up
(Level of evidence – moderate)
The desirable effects of an intervention clearly outweigh the undesirable effects (the intervention is to be put into practice), or the undesirable effects of an intervention clearly outweigh the desirable effects (the intervention is not to be put into practice)
How this guidance was developed
This recommendation was adapted from the KCE 2013 guideline (Belgium). The source recommendation is based on a systematic review of the evidence conducted to January 2010 and was graded ‘strong’ (using GRADE methods). The recommendation was expanded to cover all patients. In addition, no evidence-based source recommendation was identified for the care of patients in regional and remote areas, which was considered an important aspect of care in Australia. This additional element of the adapted recommendation was developed using an expert consensus process.
Key contact person/care coordinator
Recommendation
A key contact person, ideally a breast care nurse and/or a cancer care coordinator, should be agreed as soon as possible to support communication and coordination of patient-centred care. If appropriate, consultations may be via telephone and/or video conferencing calls, especially in regional or remote areas.
Principles in action
Patient-centred care
Image
Care coordination
Image
Communication
This recommendation was adapted from the KCE 2013 guideline (Belgium). The source recommendation is based on a systematic review of the evidence conducted to January 2010 and was graded ‘strong’ (using GRADE methods). The recommendation was expanded to cover all patients. In addition, no evidence-based source recommendation was identified for the care of patients in regional and remote areas, which was considered an important aspect of care in Australia. This additional element of the adapted recommendation was developed using an expert consensus process.