Screen of Cancer Survivorship-Occupational Therapy Services (SOCS-OTS)
What is the Screen of Cancer Survivorship-Occupational Therapy Services (SOCS-OTS)?
The SOCS-OTS is the first patient reported screening tool that identifies whether a person living with and beyond cancer would benefit from occupational therapy services. The tool contains 20 questions with a “check all that apply” format, and includes questions about basic activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, rest and sleep, leisure, social participation, health management, education, & work. If a person checks three or more problems with these every day activities, a discussion with their healthcare provider is needed to determine if an occupational therapy referral is needed.
Target Population
Individuals Living with and Beyond Cancer: The SOCS-OTS is intended to be used in the adult population (18+) with any type of cancer throughout the cancer care continuum. The SOCS-OTS can be used by individuals living with and beyond cancer at anytime prior to an appointment with their doctor to discuss if any every day activities are limited and there is a need for occupational therapy services.
What is Occupational Therapy – How Can It Help?
Cancer and its treatment can limit participation in everyday activities and affect quality of life. Occupational therapy is a profession that focuses on regaining skills for improving participation in everyday activities and enhancing quality of life. Occupational therapy practitioners can tailor recommendations to improve or modify activities of daily living (ex. showering, dressing, sexual activity, care for others, meal preparation, driving and community mobility, money and home management), health management, rest and sleep, return to work, leisure and social participation for best participation despite limitations from cancer and cancer treatments.
Cancer Care Teams: Cancer care teams that practice care coordination in any cancer setting should consider using the SOCS-OTS to determine whether an occupational therapy referral is needed in the patients they serve. Due to the fact that every day activity limitations happen at any point in the cancer care continuum, it is encouraged that cancer care teams adopt a prospective surveillance screening approach to care coordination with the use of the SOCS-OTS. This should include using the SOCS-OTS in their department or organizations routine procedures that includes having patients fill out the tool at every appointment, alongside other standard distress screens etc. This should happen prior to the patient's appointment with their care provider so that results can be discussed during their appointment and proper referral to occupational therapy can be made if needed.
Research on SOCS-OTS
The SOCS-OTS was developed by Delphi method and is a content valid screening tool. Please see the attached view-only publicly shared full text publication of the development of the SOCS-OTS from the Journal of Cancer Survivorship for further information. SOCS-OTS Delphi Study Publication
A Call to Action
When Dr. Polo began working in cancer care many years ago, she was shocked to hear about the experiences of people living with and beyond cancer, the need for occupational therapy services, and that many were not receiving the care they needed. Many people diagnosed with cancer have adopted a paradigm shift of accepting a “New Normal,” giving up activities that brought them meaning in life and accepting the status quo that their performance issues are a new part of their lives. Cancer care providers and teams need to do better for this population. We have the power to fundamentally change the acceptance of the status quo in our patients, and support people living with and beyond cancer in pushing the boundaries of a “New Normal” closer towards their prior performance levels in daily activities. This includes a professional practice paradigm shift of “as needed” screening towards routine prospective screening of performance issues in daily activities that require an active referral to occupational therapy services.
Those on the front lines of cancer care can revolutionize care by not only screening for side effects of cancer, but, more importantly, for screening for issues performing daily activities due to these common side effects. The performance of these daily activities are directly tied to quality of life in people living with and beyond cancer and their post cancer performance should no longer be accepted as a new normal. Why not use this brief patient-driven screening tool to push the boundaries of cancer’s “new normal” and support improved performance of meaningful daily activities that enhance quality of life for those living with and beyond cancer?
Access the SOCS-OTS and Related Resources
By completing the registration process, the registered user will have free access to the SOCS-OTS tool and related resources to use them freely in practice. Registered users my be contacted by the developer in the future for research purposes. Please contact Katie Polo (polok@uindy.edu) for questions regarding the SOCS-OTS.
Questions?
If you have any questions regarding administration and use of the SOCS-OTS or would like to participate in ongoing research with the clinical use of the SOCS-OTS, please contact Katie Polo (polok@uindy.edu).