A qualitative evaluation of the STOMA psychosocial intervention programme for colorectal cancer patients with stoma

Aims To explore the experiences of patients who underwent a Support availability, Thinking positively with acceptance, Overcoming social stigma, Minimizing negative feelings, Analyzing self-efficacy in stoma care (STOMA) psychosocial intervention programme for people with colorectal cancer with stoma. Background The STOMA psychosocial intervention programme was developed to improve stoma-related health outcomes for patients with colorectal cancer and stoma. Evaluation was carried out to explore their experiences. Design A qualitative exploratory approach was adopted. Methods A total of 13 people with colorectal cancer, who were: (a) scheduled for surgery that resulted in a surgical formation of stoma at a tertiary public hospital in Singapore, and (b) were allocated to the intervention group and received the STOMA psychosocial intervention programme, were recruited for the qualitative evaluation study (September to November 2016). Participants were asked to comment on the contents and delivery methods of the intervention, and the effect of the presence of family members during the sessions. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Findings Four themes were generated: (a) individual attitudes towards stoma, (b) benefits of the STOMA psychosocial intervention programme, (c) strengths of the STOMA psychosocial intervention programme, and (d) recommendations for future programmes. Conclusion The qualitative evaluation reflected the benefits of the intervention programme in improving the outcome of people with colorectal cancer with stoma with its multimodal and multidimensional approach. Trial Registration Number: ISRCTN41915584.