Lavisha S Punjabi^1, Sanmitha Nedunchezian², Levina Ang Ying Xin³ , Bryan Song Jun Yong³

¹Department of Anatomical Pathology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore
²Department of General Medicine, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Singapore
³Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

In recent years, patient-pathologist consultations(PPCs), where patients discuss their results with a pathologist, have gained traction in Western countries¹. To the best of our knowledge, perceptions towards PPCs among pathologists in Asia is hitherto unknown; hence, the aim of our study was to gauge interest towards PPCs, including perceived benefits, challenges and barriers.

 

An electronic questionnaire comprising 10 multiple-choice-questions was distributed via email and social media platforms over 4 months. Pathologists and trainees in Asia were invited to participate, anonymously and voluntarily. 

 

71 responses were received across 12 countries. More than half felt that pathologists should not directly engage with patients(61%), and were not interested in PPCs(58%). Reasons cited were challenges with patient communication(49%) and lack of occupational bandwidth(49%). Perceived benefits of PPCs were closer collaboration with other healthcare team members(77%) and broadening skill sets(66%), while perceived challenges were increased workload(73%) and medico-legal issues(59%). Barriers to PPCs cited included lack of workplace readiness(69%) and lack of remuneration(48%).

 

The results allude to lower interest towards PPCs among pathologists in Asia, compared to Western populations². This raises the question of how institutions may mitigate barriers towards PPCs, and emphasizes the importance of doing so, prior to introducing a service valued by patients³. 

 

1.  Booth AL, Katz MS, Misialek MJ, Allen TC, Joseph L. “Please help me see the dragon I am slaying”: implementation of a novel patient-pathologist consultation program and survey of patient experience. Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine. 2019 Jul 1;143(7):852-8.

2. Lapedis CJ, Kroll-Wheeler L, DeJonckheere M, Johnston D, Owens SR. Broadening the scope: a qualitative study of pathologists’ attitudes toward patient-pathologist interactions. American Journal of Clinical Pathology. 2021 Dec 1;156(6):969-79.

3. Jug R, Booth AL, Buckley AF, Newell J, Kesterson J, Gardner JM, Ozcan L, Liu B, Green CL, Joseph L, Cummings TJ. Multisite quality improvement study of a patient-pathologist consultation program. American journal of clinical pathology. 2021 Jun 1;155(6):887-94.

Statement of originality and contributions: LSP (senior author) – conceptualisation, literature review, questionnaire dissemination, data analysis, abstract drafting, poster editing