1539MO - Oncologists’ voices in time of crisis: Findings from the ESMO Resilience Task Force survey series on how members can be helped and supported – A qualitative analysis

Background

The ESMO Resilience Task Force has previously reported on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on oncologists' wellbeing and levels of burnout (Banerjee et al. 2021, Lim et al. 2021, Lim et al. 2022). With unrelenting pressures on our workforce and risk of attrition, identifying solutions to prevent burnout and protect staff wellbeing is critical. Here, we present responses from survey respondents on how they believe they could be helped and supported through the pandemic and beyond.

Methods

We previously conducted three online surveys on oncologists’ perspectives during COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2021). For all surveys, an open-ended question asked: “What would help you? Do you have any suggestions about how ESMO can help support you during COVID-19?”. In Survey III, an additional open-ended question asked participants to describe what “pleasant working conditions” were to them as this was a recurring response in earlier surveys. Responses from almost a thousand participants (N=991; Survey I n=463, Survey II n=232, Survey III n=296) were imported into the qualitative software NVivo (v12) and a thematic analysis was performed using Braun and Clarke’s six-step approach (2006).

Results

Several themes were produced to portray the ways in which oncologists perceived they could be helped and supported. These were labelled: “training, learning, education and information”, “wellbeing”, “activism and advocacy”, “financial support”, “safety” and “opportunities and career”, with “working conditions and job role”, “safety”, “wellbeing and coping”, “working relations and support from others”, and “career and professional development” important for having a pleasant physical working condition. Numerous suggestions were made within each theme, which this presentation will detail.

Conclusions

This qualitative study highlight numerous suggestions by which oncologists could be helped in a crisis such as the pandemic, including action points for ESMO, and other key stakeholders such as governments and employing hospitals/institutions. These will guide recommendations to address the profession’s challenges and help achieve a healthy and resilient global oncology workforce.

Clinical trial identification

Editorial acknowledgement

Legal entity responsible for the study

S. Banerjee.

Funding

ESMO.

Disclosure

C. Hardy: Financial Interests, Institutional, Invited Speaker, Honoraria: Pfizer; Financial Interests, Personal, Ownership Interest, Managing Director: Hardy People Ltd; Non-Financial Interests, Principal Investigator, Research Grant funded by charity Wellbeing of Women: Lancaster University; Non-Financial Interests, Other, Research Grant funded by Royal Marsden Cancer Charity: Lancaster University; Non-Financial Interests, Other, Research Grant funding by Economic and Social Research Council: Lancaster University; Non-Financial Interests, Other, Research Grant funded by the National Institute of Health Research: Lancaster University; Non-Financial Interests, Other, Research Grant funded by Sport England: Lancaster University. M.E. Elez Fernandez: Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board: Hoffman La - Roche, Servier, Amgen, Merck Serono, Sanofi, Bayer, Pierre Fabre, MSD, Takeda, Boehringer Ingelheim, Cure Teq AG, Repare Therapeutics Inc., RIN Institute Inc., Janssen; Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker: Organon, Novartis, Pfizer, BMS, Lilly, Medscape; Financial Interests, Personal, Other, Educational training: Seagen International GmbH; Financial Interests, Institutional, Funding: Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Sanofi Aventis Recherche & Développement, Amgen Inc., Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis Farmacéutica SA, Bristol Myers Squibb International Corporation, BeiGene, HalioDX SAS, Janssen-Cilag SA, Merck Health KGAA, Merck Sharp & Dohme de España SA, PharmaMar SA, Servier, Taiho Pharma USA Inc, Hutchison MediPharma International, Menarini, Merus NV, Pfizer, Mirati, Array Biopharma Inc, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, Celgene International SARL, Debiopharm International SA, Genentech Inc, MedImmune, AbbVie Deutschland Gmbh & Co KG, Bayer Pharma AG, Bioncotech Therapeutics, S.L., Biontech Rna Pharmacuticals GMBH, Biontech Small Molecules GMBH, Boehringer Ingelheim de España S.A., Daiichi Sankyo, Inc, Gercor, Hutchinson Medipharma Limited, Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc., Janssen Research & Development, Menarini Ricerche SPA, Merck, Sharp & Dohme De España S.A., Nouscom SRL., Pledpharma AB, Redx Pharma PLC, Scandion Oncology, Seattle Genetics Inc., Sotio A.S., Wntresearch AB; Non-Financial Interests, Other, Coordinator of the SEOM +MIR Section of Residents and Young Assistants: Sociedad Española de Oncología Médica (SEOM); Non-Financial Interests, Other, Speaker of the ESMO Academy: European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO); Non-Financial Interests, Other, Volunteer member of the ASCO Annual Meeting Scientific Program Committee: Developmental Therapeutics – Immunotherapy: American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO); Non-Financial Interests, Leadership Role, Member of the Scientific Program Committee and Developmental Therapeutics-Immunotherapy Track Leader, 2023-2024 term: American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO); Non-Financial Interests, Other, Member of the Scientific Committee 2024: European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO); Other, Travel, accommodations, expenses.: Roche, Merck Serono, Sanofi, Amgen, Array BioPharma, Servier, Bristol Myers Squibb. K.V. Kamposioras: Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker: Servier; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board: Merck. K. Punie: Financial Interests, Institutional, Advisory Board: AstraZeneca, Novartis, Roche, Vifor Pharma, Eli Lilly, Pierre Fabre, McCann Health, Roularta, Teva, Gilead Sciences, Pfizer, Gilead, MSD; Financial Interests, Institutional, Invited Speaker: Pfizer, Roche, Novartis, Eli Lilly, Mundi Pharma, MSD, Medscape; Financial Interests, Institutional, Other, Consultancy: Roche; Financial Interests, Personal, Other, Consultancy: Gilead, Novartis, MSD, Roche; Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker: Sanofi, AstraZeneca, Exact Sciences, Focus Patient, Pfizer, Gilead Sciences, Eli Lilly, Eli Lilly, Medimix; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board: Seagen, AstraZeneca, Pfizer; Financial Interests, Institutional, Funding: Sanofi; Non-Financial Interests, Leadership Role, Vice President: Belgian Society of Medical Oncology BSMO; Non-Financial Interests, Other, Committee Member: ESMO Resilience Task Force; Non-Financial Interests, Leadership Role: EORTC Breast Cancer Task Force Steering Committee Member; Non-Financial Interests, Advisory Role: Commission personalized medecine Federal Government Belgium; Non-Financial Interests, Advisory Role, External Scientific Advisor: European Medicine Agency. C. Oing: Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker, Renal Cancer Expert Panel Case Presentation: Ipsen; Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker, Talk on Pain Management in GU Cancer Patients: Medac; Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker, Case Presentation Soft Tissue Sarcoma: Roche; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board, Ad Board on discussing novel educational events for young haematologists: Novartis; Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker, Science Slam with a presentation on young professional support from oncological societies in Germany: AstraZeneca; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board, AdBoard assessing educational needs for oncology professionals regarding G-CSF use: Sandoz; Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker, Presentation on Burnout and Resilience in medical oncology professionals: Asklepios Hamburg; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board, Larotrectinib use in sarcoma: Bayer; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board, Experiences with Cabo/Nivo as first-line treatment for metastatic RCC: Ipsen; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board, Workshop series on improving customer experience: Pfizer; Non-Financial Interests, Other, Clinical Advisory role in early drug discovery with a fellowship position affiliated with Astex Pharmaceuticals, Cambridge, UK: Astex Pharmaceuticals; Non-Financial Interests, Institutional, Product Samples, Cytotoxic Agent for Preclinical Experiments: PharmaMar. J.B.A.G. Haanen: Financial Interests, Institutional, Advisory Board: Bristol Myers Squipp, Achilles Therapeutics, Ipsen, Merck Sharpe & Dohme, Merck Serono, Pfizer, Molecular Partners, Novartis, Roche, Sanofi, Iovance Biotherapeutics, AstraZeneca; Financial Interests, Institutional, Advisory Board, SAB member: BioNTech, Immunocore, Gadeta, Instil Bio, PokeAcel, T-Knife; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board, SAB member: Neogene Therapeutics, Scenic; Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board: Third Rock Venture, CureVac, Imcyse; Financial Interests, Personal, Stocks/Shares: Neogene Therapeutics; Financial Interests, Institutional, Research Grant: Bristol Myers Squibb, BioNTech US, Merck Sharpe & Dohme, Amgen, Novartis, Asher Bio, Sastra Cell Therapy; Non-Financial Interests, Member: ASCO, AACR, SITC; Other, Editor-in-Chief IOTECH: ESMO; Other, Editorial Board ESMO Open: ESMO; Other, Editorial Board: Kidney Cancer. K.H.J. Lim: Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker, Speaker honorarium: Janssen; Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker: SEOM, ESMO; Financial Interests, Personal, Other, Associate Editor: ESMO IOTECH (journal); Non-Financial Interests, Officer, Trainees committee member: Association of Cancer Physicians (ACP) UK; Non-Financial Interests, Officer, Young Oncologists Committee (YOC): ESMO; Non-Financial Interests, Officer, Resilience Task Force (RTF): ESMO; Other, Funded by Wellcome-Imperial 4i Clinical Research Fellowship (2018-2022): Wellcome Trust. S. Banerjee: Financial Interests, Personal, Advisory Board: Immunogen, Mersana, MSD, Roche, AstraZeneca, GSK, Oncxerna, Shattuck Labs, Novartis, Epsilogen, Seagen, Eisai, Regeneron, Verastem, Myriad; Financial Interests, Personal, Invited Speaker: AstraZeneca, GSK, Takeda, Amgen, Medscape, Research to Practice, Peerview, Novacure; Financial Interests, Personal, Stocks/Shares: PerciHealth; Financial Interests, Institutional, Research Grant: AstraZeneca, GSK; Non-Financial Interests, Principal Investigator, Phase II clinical trial Global lead, ENGOTov60/GOG3052/RAMP201: Verastem; Non-Financial Interests, Principal Investigator, ENGOT-GYN1/ATARI phase II international trial (academic sponsored): AstraZeneca; Non-Financial Interests, Principal Investigator, Academic sponsored trial PI (MONITOR-UK): GSK; Non-Financial Interests, Advisory Role, Medical advisor to UK ovarian cancer charity: Ovacome Charity; Non-Financial Interests, Leadership Role, Board Member: International Cancer Foundation (ICF). All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest.