Perception of Palliative Care Encounter

Objectives: Primary Objective The primary objective is to determine patients' perceptions of the timeliness of their referral to an outpatient palliative care clinic. The secondary objectives are to determine: 1. The factors and variables associated with perception of timeliness such as age, gender, and symptom distress 2. The patients' perceptions of the physical environment of the outpatient clinic at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center (UTMDACC) such as lighting, music, and lack of a waiting room; and 3. If there is an association between level of distress (physical, psychological, and spiritual distress as measured by Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS) and the usefulness of the referral to palliative care center.