Oncology Nursing Society 2008 Education Agenda

2008 – 2012 ONS Education Agenda
The Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) Steering Council is pleased to present the ONS Education Agenda for 2008-2012.  This document reflects educational priorities congruent with strategic framework outlined in the ONS 2009-2012 Strategic Plan. 

The Steering Council evaluates the Education Agenda annually and revises priority topics to reflect the strategic work of ONS.

Although this agenda identifies priority topics, all content areas are important to meet the educational needs of oncology nurses. 

Content Areas
Preparing the workforce for the future,
Biology and cancer,
Changes in diagnostic and treatment modalities,
Application of research
Reimbursement for care
Specialty education models,
Faculty development,
Nursing practice issues

2008-2009 Priority topics

• Cancer biology and implications for new trends in diagnosing and treating cancer
• Leadership and professional development strategies
• Faculty programming and support

Themes in Programming/Presentations
The Steering Council believes programming discussing the content areas and priority topics will best meet oncology nurses’ needs by addressing the following themes:

• New developments
• Clinical trials
• Evidence based practice
• Nursing sensitive patient outcomes
• Culturally appropriate care
• Population specific care
• Health care disparities
• Financial aspects of care
• Patient advocacy

Level of Content
To best meet the needs of the majority of our membership, it is important for content to be presented at an intermediate or advanced level.  We have defined “intermediate” as the learner having prior knowledge of the topic but may not be specialized in the subject area.  We have defined “advanced” as the learner having specialized knowledge of the topic. 

The Education Agenda is meant to give guidance on the organization’s educational priorities. ONS requests that those responsible for planning educational programs consult the agenda throughout program development and evaluation.