Cancer Treatment Delay Methods Survey |
Name of Principal Investigator: Mr. Matthew Jalink (PhD Candidate)
Supervisors: Drs. Timothy Hanna, Will King, Chris Booth
Name of Sponsor/Funder: None
Conflict of Interest: The study investigators have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
This is an invitation to participate in a research study to help understand cancer treatment delay and survival and the best methods to conduct such studies.
Evidence describing the association between the cancer diagnostic-treatment interval and survival is needed from diverse health system and country contexts to ensure optimal healthcare delivery and optimal care prioritization during times of resource constraint now and beyond the pandemic recovery phase. Healthcare systems are under considerable financial strain and evidence informing the design of resilient health systems, care pathways, and models of care are needed.
This survey is designed to elicit responses on major methodological domains pertinent to treatment delay studies including an assessment of data quality, establishing cohorts, variable definitions, and measurement, characterizing treatment modalities, accounting for the wait-time paradox, analytic approaches, data management and stewardship, and cancer-site and system-specific considerations. The primary purpose of this survey is to provide data pre-existing recommendations for a subsequent consensus-based modified Delphi study by highlighting areas of high disagreement for the Delphi steering committee to focus on in addition to identifying areas of high consensus that will require less attention during the Delphi process.
If you agree to take part in this survey by clicking the survey link at the bottom of the page you will be directed to our on-line survey. The survey should take you approximately 12 minutes to complete. There is no known risk to taking the survey. The information collected will be entirely anonymous unless you indicate your interest in continued participation by providing your email address. There will be no way to identify you after the survey is complete unless name and email provided. If you wish to be considered for participation in the subsequent Delphi study, the final question will prompt you for your name and contact information. This will be untethered from your survey responses. There are no direct benefits or compensation to you as a participant. Study results will help to inform future cancer treatment delay studies going forward. Data will be stored and housed on the secure REDCap platform on Queen's university servers where it will be retained for 5 years prior to disposal. Only study investigators (MJ, TH, CB, WK) will have access to the data. The PI (MJ) will serve as the data custodian until graduation when supervisor (TH) will serve.
Participation is voluntary and you can decline to participate in any aspect of the research without penalty. You have not waived any legal rights by your participation. Non-submitted data will not be collected. After the survey is submitted, it cannot be withdrawn. You do not have to answer any questions you don't want to. You can stop participating at any time without penalty. Please keep a copy of this letter of intent for your records.
For ethics concerns please contact the Queen's University Health Sciences and Affiliated Teaching Hospitals Research Ethics Board (HSREB) at 1-844-535-2988 (Toll free in North America) or hsreb@queensu.ca. For research conducted outside of North America use: 1-613-533-2988. If non-English speaking participants wish to contact the Chair for ethics concerns, translation assistance may be necessary, as the REB Chairs communicate in English only. The Queen's University Health Sciences and Affiliated Teaching Hospitals Research Ethics Board (HSREB) may require access to study-related records to monitor the ethical conduct of the research. HSREB is bound by confidentiality agreements concerning any personal information. Participants' confidentiality will be safeguarded to the extent permitted by the applicable laws.
If you have any questions about the research, please contact Mr. Matthew Jalink (matt.jalink@queensu.ca) or supervisor Dr. Tim Hanna (Tim.hanna@kingstonhsc.ca)