Building a Patient-Centered Research Collaborative (PCRC) for Psychosocial Oncology

As primary providers of psychosocial care for cancer patients, oncology social workers are capable of contributing to the generation, dissemination, and implementation of scientific research to inform patient-centered care. Cancer treatment centers, however, typically limit their investment in time or resources to involve social workers in research. Furthermore, oncology social workers are often occupied with heavy caseloads and clinical and administrative responsibilities that limit their participation in the research process. The recent initiation of a Patient-Centered Research Collaborative Group for Psychosocial Oncology (PCRC), funded through a Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Engagement Award, represents a strategy for leveraging the knowledge and skills of social work clinicians, academic researchers, and patients to conduct research of high relevance to patients and families. Its purpose is to advance the knowledge base that informs psychosocial care of cancer patients and their families but also to strategically disseminate study results for the expressed purposes of enhancing patient experiences and population health, reducing disparities, and improving communication and coordination across systems of care. This roundtable will introduce participants to the purpose, structure, and function of a PCRC for Psychosocial Oncology and then provide opportunity for discussion related to how a PCRC can generate compelling research study questions, gather useful and appropriate data, and consider mechanisms for disseminating findings to ultimately influence patient outcomes and care. To stimulate discussion, a presenter will provide a brief overview of how a PCRC offers ongoing coordination and standardized policies and procedures across study sites to (1) increase the likelihood that investigative teams enroll samples large enough to power studies; (2) complete data collection in a timely manner; (3) minimize administrative and logistical loads associated with launching new studies; and (4) assure that lessons learned through studies undertaken by the cooperative group inform future studies. The result is greater representativeness, reliability, trustworthiness and utility of data derived from studies conducted within an established infrastructure that supports multi-institutional studies. A second presenter will describe how a core set of principles contribute to the sustainability and success of a collaborative research group. These core principles include: commitment to shared research purposes; development of research capacity in participating sites; redress of health disparities attributable to social determinants; agile response to research requests from government, industry, and investigators; focus on translation and implementation; education and training of future clinical researchers; and, actionable results that inform clinical practice and policy. Following these discussion prompts, this roundtable will be an opportunity for participants to identify and engage with others who share similar research interests, and consider the potentials for conducting collaborative research. Our ultimate goal for the roundtable is to promote an understanding of how a collaborative research group can advance investigators' mutual interests and goals, and subsequently motivate them to consider collaborative efforts through a new and emerging PCRC for Psychosocial Oncology.