# Communicating with Oncology Nurses about Values from the Outset (CONVO): An Innovative Primary Palliative Care Intervention in English and Espanol

> **NIH NIH R21** · SLOAN-KETTERING INST CAN RESEARCH · 2020 · $221,250

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Each person facing illness has a unique perspective on what is important/gives meaning/defines acceptable
quality of life. This perspective - the individual's health-related values – provides the foundation of patient-
centered care. Articulation of values allows the individual to feel heard/respected as a person and to share in
medical decision-making. Thus, in cancer care, clinician-patient discussion of values early on is essential even
in the context of early stage and/or curable disease. However, existing evidence indicates a compelling need
for interventions to improve this communication. Availability of palliative care specialists to help communicate
about/align care with values remains limited, especially in outpatient settings. Oncology guidelines and
standards call for “primary” palliative care (i.e., by interprofessional oncology teams) as part of cancer care for
every patient from time of diagnosis. We have developed an innovative intervention - Communicating with
Oncology Nurses about Values from the Outset (CONVO) – that leverages trusting relationships between
patients and nurses to incorporate structured, nurse-led discussions of values in routine outpatient
oncology care from the beginning, regardless of the patient's cancer stage or prognosis. The nurse
summarizes the patient's values, shares this summary with patient and oncologist, includes it in the EHR for all
health care providers to review, and encourages the patient to discuss these values with family/other informal
caregivers or surrogates. In a pilot study at our dedicated cancer center, the CONVO intervention was feasible
and acceptable to patients (mostly non-Latino Whites) and clinicians. We now propose to expand this work
outside our center to include Spanish-speaking Latino cancer patients, the largest and fastest-growing minority
group in the US, who have been poorly represented in prior research to improve communication around values
in cancer. Specific Aims are: 1) To translate/transcreate (linguistic plus cultural adaptation) the CONVO
intervention for implementation with Spanish-speaking Latino cancer patients receiving outpatient oncologic
care in their communities. 2) To evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of this intervention as implemented in
English and Spanish in different organizational contexts and communities. Latino adaptation of CONVO will
use mixed methods in formative and adaptive iterative phases. To evaluate feasibility and effectiveness, we
will then conduct a pre-post pilot trial of the intervention in English and Spanish at two community-based
oncology clinics where Latinos are strongly represented. The primary effectiveness outcome will be the
occurrence of discussion of values (Quality of Communication assessment, validated in English/Spanish) as
reported by patients at 6 weeks (± 2-week window) after the timepoint for intervention delivery. This research is
significant in extending/evaluating an innovative nurse-led,...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10129041
- **Project number:** 1R21NR019188-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** SLOAN-KETTERING INST CAN RESEARCH
- **Principal Investigator:** FRANCESCA M GANY
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $221,250
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-09-25 → 2022-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10129041

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10129041, Communicating with Oncology Nurses about Values from the Outset (CONVO): An Innovative Primary Palliative Care Intervention in English and Espanol (1R21NR019188-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10129041. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*