Critical appraisal:Hariton E, Bortoletto P, Cardozo ER, Hochberg EP, Sabatini ME 2016

Critical Appraisal

Article being appraised

Hariton E, Bortoletto P, Cardozo ER, Hochberg EP, Sabatini ME. The Role of Oncofertility Clinics in Facilitating Access to Reproductive Specialists. J Patient Exp 2016 Dec;3(4):131-136 Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28725849.

Applicable clinical question

What is the effect of providing onco-fertility services or referral pathways on the referral of cancer patients to fertility specialists?

Key Facts

Study Design

case series

Study aims:

To determine the impact of the establishment of a dedicated oncofertility clinic on the frequency of patient referrals for fertility preservation consultation and the time from patient referral to consultation.

Number of Patients:

150

female patients eligible for FP who were seen at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center.

Reported outcome(s):

No. of females patients referred for FP.
Length of time it took for a referral.

Results of outcome(s):

The establishment of the oncofertility clinic resulted in the mean time to consult decreasing by 2.81 days, from 10.38 to 7.57 days (P = .034), a 27% decline.
The mean number of patients seen per month increased from 2.31 to 3.30 (P < 0.01) and the median increased from 3 to 4. Furthermore, there was a near doubling in the percentage of patients referred for fertility evaluation, from 1.69% to 3.01% (x2 = 12.95, P < .01).

Comments on results:

FP program decreased time to fertility consult. The number of patients seen increased after introduction of the program.

Includes an economic evaluation

no