The more I talk to cancer survivors and hear their stories, the more I believe the it is imperative we put in place guidelines for increasing cancer rehab referrals and improving care coordination. Survivors tell me that it is a huge burden to attend the multitude of appointment and tests associated with cancer treatment. Adding yet another appointment to the already packed calendar, while trying to maintain a sense of normalcy and tend to family and work obligation, seems all but impossible. But my sense is that survivors often view rehab as secondary to other treatments, and I wonder if that isn’t, at least in part, because their physicians don’t include cancer rehab on the list of treatment priorities. During a recent casual conversation with a survivor friend, she said one doctor told her to “just keep doing what you’re doing.” Other doctors routinely turn to rehab for their patients. Why this drastic disparity?
There are a few reasons why there is such fragmentation when it comes to cancer rehab referrals.
A lack of knowledge about cancer rehab and its availability.
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No systematic screening for rehab currently in place.
Not enough cancer care coordination support for already overburdened patients and their families.
