correspondence
How Can Documentation of require care is promoted bidirectionally, the potential
Caregivers Offer More Than One-Way
Care by Health Care Professionals?
TO THE EDITOR:
Applebaum et al1 have argued that the use of caregiver
records independent of the patient’s medical records
is the first step in caregiver care. We believe that use of
this type of documentation has many merits such as
maintaining the privacy of the caregiver and providing
continuous care even after their bereavement.
However, this is a one-way system that places an
emphasis on approaching the caregiver from the
medical staff side. Therefore, we would like to propose
that documentation be made to function bidirection-
ally between the caregiver and medical staff, and that
caregiver and bereaved care can be offered by each
medical institution through its web site and other media.
Although our institution has not yet began use of the
type of caregiver records described by Applebaum
et al,1 we have been operating both a caregivers’ clinic
and bereavement clinic since 2007, and clearly state
on our web site that patient families and bereaved
families can receive assistance.2 To date, about 200
caregivers and 400 bereaved families have taken
advantage of our system, and we deal with both the
psychologic and physical problems experienced by
caregivers and bereaved families.3-8 The process
leading consultations is voluntary and based on widely
available information and introductions from medical
professionals who identify a need for such care
through screening.
If the use of caregiver records as a standard of care as
proposed by Applebaum et al1 together with the
awareness that caregivers and bereaved families
n n n
3188 Volume 39, Issue 28
Downloaded from ascopubs.org by 89.153.241.157 on January 2, 2023 from 089.153.241.157
Copyright © 2023 American Society of Clinical Oncology. All rights reserved.
for treatment can be encouraged by the medical staff
as well as the caregivers and bereaved families, and
care provided in a more timely manner.
Mayumi Ishida, CP, PhD, and Hideki Onishi,
MD, PhD
Department of Psycho-oncology, Saitama Medical
University International Medical Center, Saitama,
Japan
AUTHORS’ DISCLOSURES OF POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF
INTEREST
Disclosures provided by the authors are available with this article at
DOI https://doi.org/10.1200/JCO.21.01382.
REFERENCES
1. Applebaum AJ, Kent EE, Lichtenthal WG: Documentation of care-
givers as a standard of care. J Clin Oncol 39:1955-1958, 2021
2. Saitama Medical University International Medical Center: Department
of psycho-oncology. https://www.international.saitama-med.ac.jp/en/
detail1/d1-14/
3. Onishi H, Uchida N, Takahashi T, et al: Thiamine deficiency in the
bereaved after cancer-related spousal loss. Palliat Support Care 17:
738-740, 2019
4. Onishi H, Ishida M, Uchida N, et al: Thiamine deficiency observed in a
cancer patient’s caregiver. Palliat Support Care 17:611-613, 2019
5. Ishida M, Onishi H, Toyama H, et al: Missing memories of death:
Dissociative amnesia in the bereaved the day after a cancer death.
Palliat Support Care 13:1787-1790, 2015
6. Ishida M, Onishi H, Matsubara M, et al: Psychological distress of the
bereaved seeking medical counseling at a cancer center. Jpn J Clin
Oncol 42:506-512, 2012
7. Ishida M, Onishi H, Wada M, et al: Psychiatric disorders in patients
who lost family members to cancer and asked for medical help:
Descriptive analysis of outpatient services for bereaved families at
Japanese cancer center hospital. Jpn J Clin Oncol 41:380-385, 2011
8. Ishida M, Onishi H, Wada M, et al: Bereavement dream? Successful
antidepressant treatment for bereavement-related distressing
dreams in patients with major depression. Palliat Support Care 8:
95-98, 2010
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1200/JCO.21.01382; Published at ascopubs.org/
journal/jco on August 2, 2021.
 Correspondence

AUTHORS’ DISCLOSURES OF POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

How Can Documentation of Caregivers Offer More Than One-Way Care by Health Care Professionals?
The following represents disclosure information provided by authors of this manuscript. All relationships are considered compensated unless otherwise noted.
Relationships are self-held unless noted. I 5 Immediate Family Member, Inst 5 My Institution. Relationships may not relate to the subject matter of this manuscript.
For more information about ASCO’s conflict of interest policy, please refer to www.asco.org/rwc or ascopubs.org/jco/authors/author-center.
Open Payments is a public database containing information reported by companies about payments made to US-licensed physicians (Open Payments).

Hideki Onishi
Honoraria: Shionogi, Eisai, Daiichi Sankyo/Lilly, Kyowa Kirin International, Ono
Yakuhin
No other potential conflicts of interest were reported.

Journal of Clinical Oncology

Downloaded from ascopubs.org by 89.153.241.157 on January 2, 2023 from 089.153.241.157

Copyright © 2023 American Society of Clinical Oncology. All rights reserved.