Aim:
The Victorian Integrated Cancer Services (VICS) Survivorship Program aims to understand established survivorship models of care across Victoria and improve access to coordinated, high‑quality care for people after cancer.
Methods:
A comprehensive survey was developed to capture the variety of survivorship models of care established across Victorian public health services. The survey was distributed through existing communication channels for 6 weeks. Data collected were analysed and served as the foundation for the ‘Cancer Follow-up Care Catalogue’.
Results:
The survey received a total of 76 valid responses, capturing 67 survivorship services in hospitals and 9 services in community or private settings. The environmental scan identified services that offer survivorship care for multiple cancer types (n=45, 59%), with some offering dedicated outpatient services for breast (n=16, 21%), haematology (n=11, 14%), colorectal (n=11, 14%), and prostate (n=11, 14%) cancer survivors. The majority of these services were staffed by nurses, allied health professionals, and specialists. Other forms of survivorship care identified include discussion of cancer survivorship topics across many points of care, programs within health services, and support groups. Gaps identified include limited allied health–led services, a lack of community services, and the need for better technology integration.
Conclusion:
The survey was able to capture the current state of survivorship care services available across Victorian public health services. Details on a range of functioning survivorship models are now publicly available. Fourteen implementation projects to survivorship models into existing services are currently under way across Victoria.