Back The Children’s Clinical University Hospital (CCUH) has completed a pilot project introducing Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs*) in paediatric haemato-oncology for the first time in Latvia. PROMs are an internationally recognised and widely used approach that helps assess the overall impact of disease, treatment, and care on patients’ quality of life, as well as on its various dimensions.
More than 70 patients and their parents participated in the pilot project. During the project, surveys were conducted to evaluate the impact of illness, treatment, and care on patients’ quality of life. The results, which have been published in an international scientific journal**, demonstrate that the PROM instrument used in the pilot project is practical and applicable for paediatric haemato-oncology patients at the Children’s Hospital and provides significant benefits for treatment and care. The pilot project was implemented within the framework of the Swiss–Latvian Cooperation Programme project “Advancement of Paediatric Cancer Care at the Children’s Clinical University Hospital.”
In practice, PROMs are standardised questionnaires completed by children and their parents. They help healthcare professionals assess patients’ health status, symptoms, functional abilities, and quality of life. PROMs provide a systematic way of collecting information directly from the patient’s perspective regarding treatment outcomes and the impact of disease on daily life. This approach also enables the timely identification of psychosocial challenges and supports a more accurate assessment of patients’ needs.
“PROM questionnaires help us better understand the needs of patients and their families, while enabling us to provide more targeted support to those who need it most,” says Liene Smane, physician at the Children’s Hospital Haemato-Oncology Department.
In the near future, the first PROM tool is planned to be integrated into routine clinical practice in the Children’s Hospital Haemato-Oncology Department. It will be used both during and after treatment to monitor patients’ quality of life at different stages of their care journey. Additional specialised PROM tools will also be introduced to assess fatigue, sleep quality, and psychosocial well-being.
“International experience shows that the use of PROMs supports more informed decision-making regarding treatment and supportive care. This is an important step towards a patient-centred approach and the integration of treatment, care, and patient experience, which is one of the key priorities of the Children’s Hospital’s new strategy,” says Valts Ābols, Chairman of the Board of the Children’s Hospital.
The successful implementation of PROMs also requires digital solutions that facilitate data collection, management, and analysis.
The introduction of PROMs will continue with funding from the Swiss–Latvian Cooperation Programme and the support of international experts, contributing to the development of modern healthcare services that are responsive to patients’ needs and experiences.
*PROM – Patient-Reported Outcome Measures
** https://www.ejcped.com/article/S2772-610X(26)00019-X/fulltext
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