Clinical Oncology Nursing: Will You Leave or Stay?

Anyone who works in clinical oncology care sees it, experiences it, or feels it on a daily basis: a real or perceived shortage of nurses and, specifically, experienced clinical oncology nurses.

Tackling the Next Pandemic: An Infodemic in Clinical Oncology Care

In some quarters, turbulence in these environments has been ginned up by a steady rejection of the threat of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and any expectation that vaccines are effective. [...]the anti-COVID-19 pandemic atmosphere has affected clinical oncology practice, generating healthcare information and commentaries that have been misleading, exploitative, and toxic (Fillon, 2022;Grimes, 2022;National Library of Medicine, 2021). [...]misinformation can give misplaced credibility to miracle cures and predatory providers touting unproven treatments (Fillon, 2022;Grimes, 2022). For these studies, so many variables can be the focus, such as target populations, influencers, clinical content, belief systems, patient attitudes and biases, disparities in healthcare access, and effective provider responses to erroneous information (Chou et al., 2020;Grimes, 2022, Hyatt et al., 2022;Teplinsky et al., 2022). * Continue to establish trust with our patients, so they depend on their oncology nurse as a source of reliable and accurate information.

Tackling the Next Pandemic: An Infodemic in Clinical Oncology Care

In some quarters, turbulence in these environments has been ginned up by a steady rejection of the threat of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and any expectation that vaccines are effective. [...]the anti-COVID-19 pandemic atmosphere has affected clinical oncology practice, generating healthcare information and commentaries that have been misleading, exploitative, and toxic (Fillon, 2022;Grimes, 2022;National Library of Medicine, 2021). [...]misinformation can give misplaced credibility to miracle cures and predatory providers touting unproven treatments (Fillon, 2022;Grimes, 2022). For these studies, so many variables can be the focus, such as target populations, influencers, clinical content, belief systems, patient attitudes and biases, disparities in healthcare access, and effective provider responses to erroneous information (Chou et al., 2020;Grimes, 2022, Hyatt et al., 2022;Teplinsky et al., 2022). * Continue to establish trust with our patients, so they depend on their oncology nurse as a source of reliable and accurate information.

Delayed Oncology Care Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic: Case Studies

Unfortunate outcomes of COVID-19 pandemic healthcare policies--implemented to limit exposure to the coronavirus--were delays in clinical oncology care delivery. These delays and interruptions disrupted standard models of clinical oncology care delivery, affecting prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. The reason for these delays in care were multifactorial. Among them were patients avoiding medical care facilities because of their concern about contracting the virus;reduced patient schedules so patient care could be spread out over time, expanding clinical spaces;and a reduced number of clinical staff members available to work because of contracting the virus and limited personal protective equipment for providers and patients. Prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the four case studies in this article illustrate how oncology nurses and their colleagues used novel clinical strategies to limit delays affecting patient care delivery.

Direction From Data.

This past summer, three pivotal trend reports were released that give direction to clinical oncology care and oncology nursing. After a tumultuous 2020, results from the 2020 U.S. census were finally compiled and reported in August 2021.

Pain Management Revisited.

Now that the SARS-CoV-2 virus and its variants have altered clinical oncology practice as we know it, let's return to a familiar focus from the Core Curriculum for Oncology Nursing-pain management. Much has happened during the past two years that influences the effective management of pain in patients with cancer-not the least of which is a clinical environment that has been changed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 Vaccines: Preparing for Vaccination in the Context of Clinical Oncology Care.

BACKGROUND: In the environment of an infectious pandemic, vaccines are a primary public health strategy to prevent the spread of disease. With the COVID-19 pandemic, there is heightened interest in safe and effective vaccines and their use in the context of clinical oncology practice. OBJECTIVES: This article provides foundational information about vaccines in general and vaccines developed to protect against the SARS-CoV-2 virus in the United States, as well as clinical nurse strategies to apply vaccines in clinical oncology practice. METHODS: The article is based on a review of public health literature and reputable websites about vaccines and their development in clinical care. FINDINGS: This foundational information about vaccines reviews their history and development, as well as the development of COVID-19 vaccines specifically, and discusses COVID-19 vaccines as part of clinical oncology care. Supporting best practices in clinical oncology care, nurses can provide factual, evidence-based information about vaccine safety, effectiveness, and safe administration.

COVID-19 Pandemic: What Have We Learned?

This issue of the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing presents foundational content about clinical oncology care in the environment of a virulent pandemic, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to overwhelm global health and healthcare delivery systems.

Through a Face Mask.

Put aside the exasperating debate about whether individuals should wear a face mask to protect themselves and others against the spread of the COVID-19 virus (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020). Wearing a face mask has become a cause célèbre, with implications of safety for oneself and others, trust in science, and being in defiance of or in lockstep with healthcare authority figures.

New Normal Terminology.

The COVID-19 pandemic has required us to recognize a new normal and other additions to our general and clinical vocabulary. Some were preexisting terms that now have been broadened or changed during these unprecedented times. Others have helped to bring to light some of the issues or difficulties that healthcare professionals faced prior to this pandemic.

eHealth During a Pandemic.

eHealth applications will become a more prevalent operational component of the standard of care. They will continue to be reliable methods to expedite patient-provider communication, meet surveillance milestones, and provide timely symptom management.