Caring for patients with cancer

The results of the 2007 National Physician Survey (NPS) provide an interesting insight into second-year family medicine residents’ expectations and perceptions of caring for patients with cancer. A total of 77.3% of residents indicated that they intended to treat patients with cancer as a component of their future practices. This percentage varied substantially depending on the anticipated patient population, from a high of 95.2% of residents who expected to serve rural, isolated, or remote communities, to 85.1% of those looking to practise in small towns.

As Figure 1 illustrates, regardless of the population to be served, a discrepancy emerged when residents were asked to gauge their preparedness to provide care to patients with cancer. For example, although 95.2% of family medicine residents intending to serve rural, isolated, or remote populations anticipated caring for patients with cancer, only 76.2% thought they were adequately trained to manage such cases. These findings highlight the need for flexible training programs that will encourage future family physicians to take on these much-needed health care provider responsibilities.

Figure 1

Second-year family medicine residents who intended to provide cancer care and those who thought they were adequately trained to do so, by expected area of practice

The NPS is a collaborative project of the College of Family Physicians of Canada, the Canadian Medical Association, and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Additional results are available at www.nationalphysiciansurvey.ca. If you would like the opportunity to develop and write a future Fast Fact using the NPS results, please contact Artem Safarov, National Physician Survey Research Assistant, at 800 387-6197, extension 242, or asafarov{at}cfpc.ca.