On 10 May 2023, the kick-off meeting of MyPath’s clinician focus groups took place. Organised by MyPath partner ESMO, the virtual session was attended by 21 participants of which 16 were representatives from 15 ESMO Designated Centres of Integrated Oncology and Palliative Care based in 13 European countries.
To ensure that the key stakeholders’ needs are being considered in the development of the MyPath solution, focus groups will be organised throughout the project, involving various stakeholders like healthcare providers, patients, and policymakers. Through these workshops, feedback and input will be gathered on the new digital patient-centred care pathways (dPCCPs). The first workshops are targeted to clinicians from the ESMO Designated Centres (DCs) based in Europe.
The kick-off meeting on 10 May outlined the aim of the project, to collaboratively develop and implement dPCCPs, patient-reported outcome measures, and treatment decision support incorporated in a user-friendly digital solution. The meeting looked at the development and progress of the project from Work Package 1 (learn more about WP1) in September 2022, reflecting on the consolidation of data to begin planning for the MyPath digital tool.
The current status of development is design, with the key component being the inclusion of 9 clinical settings within cancer centres throughout Europe. Using the Eir digital diagnostic system, a computer-based symptom assessment tool for cancer, the MyPath solution is now being collaboratively designed with the MyPath partners. Eir is a computer-based symptom assessment tool for cancer, developed within the European Palliative Care Research Centre. The development of the pathways is being advanced in partnership with the 9 clinical settings using tumour-specific support tools.
The feedback from the kick-off meeting was positive, with participants seeing the benefit of the tool and being eager to engage in the development and testing going forward. Of importance will be the next stage of development at the MyPath ESMO DCs Workshop taking place in Brussels, Belgium, on 20 September 2023. This will be an opportunity for a test model of the MyPath system to be demonstrated and tested with this engaged audience.
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