Search Results for "patient education"

“As nurses and healthcare providers, we need to be up to date with the most current evidence-based practices. To achieve and maintain this, we must institute a learning culture. It is critical to promote a learning culture and healthcare institution to keep both patients and nurses safe,” Klara Culmone, MSN, RN, OCN®, assistant nurse manager at the Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU Langone Health in New York, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BS, AOCNS®, manager of oncology nursing practice at ONS, during a discussion about what oncology nurses should know about creating a learning culture in the workplace for nurses at all levels, from staff to managers and administrators.

“Sometimes when we talk about skin toxicities, it can get lost in translation for these patients when we start talking about nausea, vomiting, all those other things. . . . They don’t take into consideration how serious these skin toxicities can be and how they can quickly get out of control if they’re not reported to the medical team in a timely manner,” ONS member George Ebanks, MSN, RN, OCN®, a medical oncology nurse in the Cutaneous Oncology Clinic at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, FL, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BC, AOCNS®, oncology clinical specialist at ONS, during a conversation about symptom management for the dermatologic complications of cancer therapies.

“We found that nurses still needed clarity of terminology and the rationale for germline, somatic, and homologous recombination deficiency testing,” ONS member Paula Anastasia, MN, RN, AOCN®, clinical nurse specialist for UCLA Health in Los Angeles, CA, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BC, AOCNS®, oncology clinical specialist at ONS. Anastasia discussed the findings of a July 2022 ONS focus group that she facilitated on PARP inhibitor therapy, biomarker testing and terminology, and oral medication adherence for patients with ovarian cancer. This podcast episode is supported by a sponsorship from AstraZeneca. ONS is solely responsible for the criteria, objectives, content, quality, and scientific integrity of its programs and publications.

“Saline is very benign and doesn’t have any risk of harm for the patient. They’re small doses, so we’re not worried about sodium or anything. The risk of heparin is actually quite extensive,” MiKaela Olsen, DNP, APRN-CNS, AOCNS®, FAAN, clinical program director in oncology at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Johns Hopkins Health System in Baltimore, MD, told Stephanie Jardine, BSN, RN, oncology clinical specialist at ONS, during a conversation about the latest evidence surrounding central venous catheter flushing solutions and techniques. You can earn free NCPD contact hours after listening to this episode by completing the evaluation linked below.

“A lot of the efforts have been made to improve the patient experience for these treatments, as they can be given for years at a time. For example, when leuprolide debuted way back in 1985, it was a daily injection. But four years later, they developed the monthly depo formulation. Now we have formulations that are approved for administration once only every three, four, and even six months,” Andrew Ruplin, PharmD, clinical oncology pharmacist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, WA, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BS, AOCNS®, manager of oncology nursing practice at ONS, during a conversation about the luteinizing hormone–releasing hormone (LHRH) antagonist and agonist drug classes.

“I think we’re in a scientific golden age for prostate cancer and probably cancer as a whole, but we’re talking about prostate cancer today. So I’m excited to be sitting on the front lines, seeing the new ways that we can help our patients. But I do still think CYP17 inhibitors will continue to be one of our main weapons against prostate cancer for a very long time,” Andrew Ruplin, PharmD, clinical oncology pharmacist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, WA, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BS, AOCNS®, manager of oncology nursing practice at ONS, during a conversation about the CYP17 inhibitor drug class.

“These evidence-based standards provide a great framework for best practice in cancer care and the 2016 publication is extensively referenced. However, patient care mistakes and medication errors still happen. So, it’s imperative that we review the current literature and look for new evidence that’s been published,” ONS member MiKaela Olsen, DNP, APRN-CNS, AOCNS®, FAAN, clinical program director of oncology at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Johns Hopkins Health System told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BS, AOCNS®, manager of oncology nursing practice at ONS, during a conversation about the new Antineoplastic Therapy Administration Safety Standards for Adult and Pediatric Oncology from ASCO and ONS.

“When someone is faced with a cancer diagnosis, you want to really try to work to make that patient an active part of their care team. Understand that there are things out of their control, but there are also things that are within their control. You can teach them how to manage fatigue associated with anemia, or how to prevent falls. These are the things you can do to prevent infection; these are the nutrition things you should focus on to help you feel your best,” ONS member Kimberly Miller, BSN, RN, BMTCN®, transplant case manager at Nebraska Medicine in Omaha, and member of the Metro Omaha ONS Chapter, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BC, AOCNS®, oncology clinical specialist at ONS, during a conversation about nursing management of cancer-related hematologic complications.

The inflating price tag of cancer care means that more patients are facing the difficult choice of paying for everyday needs or their cancer treatment. Matthew Banegas, PhD, MPH, MS, associate professor of radiation medicine and applied sciences at the University of California San Diego and a member of Moores Cancer Center’s Cancer Control Program, talks with Stephanie Jardine, BSN, RN, oncology clinical specialist at ONS, about COVID-driven financial hardship and its implications for cancer care. Banegas presented about the topic at the 47th Annual ONS Congress in Anaheim, CA, on April 30, 2022; his session is linked in the episode notes. You can also earn free NCPD contact hours by completing the evaluation linked in the episode notes.   

“First, you want to refer patients to an eye care provider prior to initiating therapy, and I think communication at this point is really important. You need to tell the eye care provider why they’re being referred, what treatment they’re getting, the most common ocular toxicities, and also what needs to be done at every visit. They need to do a visual acuity; they need to do a slit-lamp eye exam. And these eye care providers need to know that ahead of time, so they’re doing everything at that visit,” Courtney Arn, APRN-CNP, nurse practitioner at the Ohio State University James Cancer Hospital in Columbus, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BS, AOCNS®, manager of oncology nursing practice at ONS, during a conversation about ocular toxicities and their management in cancer care.