Planning for a pandemic: Mitigating risk to radiation therapy service delivery in the COVID‐19 era

Abstract

The novel coronavirus (COVID‐19) has rapidly impacted all of our lives following its escalation to pandemic status on 11 March 2020. Government guidelines and restrictions implemented to mitigate the risk of COVID‐19 community transmission have forced radiation therapy departments to promptly adjust to the significant impact on our ability to deliver best clinical care. The inherent nature of our tri‐partied professions relies heavily on multidisciplinary teamwork and patient–clinician interactions. Teamwork and patient interaction are critical to the role of a radiation therapist. The aim of this paper is to describe the experience of the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre’s (Peter Mac) radiation therapy services during the preliminary stages of the COVID‐19 pandemic in minimising risk to patients, staff and our clinical service. Four critical areas were identified in developing risk mitigation strategies across our service: (a) Workforce planning, (b) Workforce communication, (c) Patient safety and wellbeing, and (d) Staff safety and wellbeing. Each of these initiatives had a focus on continuum of clinical care, whilst minimising risk of cross infection for our radiation therapy workforce and patients alike. Initiatives included, but were not limited to, establishing COVID‐Eclipse clinical protocols, remote access to local applications, implementation of Microsoft Teams, personal protective equipment (PPE) guidelines and virtual ‘Division of Radiation Oncology’ briefing/updates. The COVID‐19 pandemic has dictated change in conventional radiation therapy practice. It is hoped that by sharing our experiences, the radiation therapy profession will continue to learn, adapt and navigate this period together, to ensure optimal outcomes for ourselves and our patients.

https://researchopenworld.com/management-of-cancer-patients-undergoing-radiation-therapy-during-the-novel-coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19-pandemic-a-review-of-the-literature/#

“…Four types of publications were broadly identified: 1) Literature reviews and operational/planning guidelines which did not contain patient data but rather represent institutional or expert opinion (Table 1); 2) consensus guidelines generated by governing bodies and sitespecific groups for specific cancer histologies (Table 2); 3) retrospective single or multiple institution papers (Table 3) [1][2][3]. These broader reviews (**) were not necessarily RT specific but contained some information regarding RT.…”

“…Since the recognition of the COVID-19 pandemic, evidence has become available that a cancer diagnosis is considered one of the comorbid conditions that increase the risk of COVID 19 infection [1][2][3]. Meanwhile COVID-19 infection in cancer patients is associated with higher morbidity and mortality [4].…”

Novel coronavirus mitigation measures implemented by radiotherapy centres in low and middle-income countries: a systematic review

“…Radiotherapy leaders in high-income coutries (HICs) have generally pursued cautious policies to help staff, cancer patients and their families stay safe at radiotherapy centres during the COVID-19 pandemic (Anderson et al 2020). Some have adopted: physical distancing by reorganising spaces and reducing number of acompanying family members; triage systems; hand hygiene; use of personal protective equipment (PPE) for all cancer patients regardless of known COVID-19 status; and use of telehealth for training, multidisiciplinary team meetings and follow-ups (Anderson et al 2020;Belkacemi et al 2020). Similar strategies are now increasingly being implemented in most LMICs often with limited support, weak infrastructure and less robust local evidence.…”

Strategies to develop student support mechanisms in medical radiation sciences clinical education

“…It is therefore important to consider issues specific to women, 8 students from indigenous communities, low socio-economic backgrounds, rural areas as well as international students and how these groups may respond differently to stress. 4 The unprecedented Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic recently added additional stress to learning environments, 9 increasing demand for support services, requiring universities to invest more resources to develop more effective strategies for improving student's mental health.…”