Annual Report 2022
Outpatient Treatment Center
Shunsuke Kondo, Kazuki Sudo, Ohkuma Yusuke, Shinichi Makita, Yasuji Miyakita, Hidekazu Hirano, Jun Sato, Aiko Maejima, Eiji Nakano, Toru Akagi, Ryoko Udagawa, Kimihiko Sato, Naoki Maezawa, Atsuko Ito, Saori Takiyama, Natsuko Maeda
Introduction
The Outpatient Treatment Center deals with all types of patients with cancer who have received chemotherapies as outpatients. Our mission is to provide safe, comfortable and high-quality standard chemotherapies. Several groups collaborate to ensure the best chemotherapies, consisting of medical oncologists, nurses, pharmacists, medical social workers (MSW) and clinical research coordinators (CRCs). Our visions are: 1) to provide an evidenced-based medicine (EBM) and develop novel anti-cancer drugs; 2) to provide safe and efficient treatments and manage adverse events; and 3) to create a comfortable environment and maintain the quality of life of patients.
The Team and What We Do
- Setup
Our division consists of one managing director (S.K), eight other medical doctors, one deputy nurse director, one nurse manager, three deputy nurse managers, one deputy drug director, one chief pharmacist, one dispensing chief, one chief engineer of the Department of Laboratory Medicine, 29 Nurses, two pharmacists, and 2-3 reception staff.
- Performance
We set up a second Outpatient Treatment Center at the beginning of 2015. There are 34 beds in the 1st Outpatient Treatment Center and 34 in the 2nd Outpatient Treatment Center (total, 68).
In 2022, the Outpatient Treatment Center supported 50,705 patients who received anti-cancer drug (Figure 1). The departments using the Outpatient Treatment Center were Breast and Medical Oncology, Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology, Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Oncology, Thoracic Oncology, Hematology, Dermatologic Oncology, Experimental Therapeutics, and others. General infusions, general intramuscular or subcutaneous injections, blood transfusions, bone marrow puncture, lumbar puncture, intraperitoneal or chest drainage, and blood gas analyses were conducted in the center.
Figure 1. Cumulative total number of patients
- Staff Meeting
The monthly staff meeting is held on the 2nd Thursday at 16:30-17:30 every month with the participation of physicians and nurses who are the main members of the center. The steering committee is held on the 3rd Thursday every month.
- Telecare and Conference
We conducted a telephone consultation service (Telecare) for outpatients who have received chemotherapies. We manage around 120 cases per month. Case conferences, especially on telecare, are held on Tuesday monthly with the participation of multidisciplinary specialists, including medical oncologists, nurses, and pharmacists.
Research Activities
- Operation of the early morning frame
- Support for circumstances of working in investigational drugs including the PK/PD study
- Safety management of allergic and infusion reactions
- Telecare for emergencies in outpatients who receive chemotherapy
- Monitoring adverse events of immunotherapies and molecular agents
- Communication with other departments
Education
We provide educational opportunities for multidisciplinary specialists, including medical oncologists, nurses, and pharmacists. We also provide an educational program for institutions outside the NCC, for medical oncologists, nurses, pharmacists and MSWs in designated hospitals for cancer treatment in the each prefecture.
Future Prospects
The Outpatient Treatment Center will continue proposing a model of more clinical trials in the outpatient method. We aim to shorten waiting time, to achieve smooth administration of novel molecular targeted drugs for outpatients, to put into practice multidisciplinary care, and to create a comfortable environment for cancer patients who receive chemotherapy in the Outpatient Treatment Center. Moreover, we are challenged to work with higher labor productivity and to create a rewarding workplace in the Outpatient Treatment Center of the National Cancer Center Hospital.