ABSTRACT
Cancer chemotherapy regimens which had been used at a ward and outpatient chemotherapy in various departments were collected and made available to everybody in October, 2003. However, it was difficult to manage cancer chemotherapy regimens in real time, from the viewpoint of risk management. Then, the Cancer Chemotherapy Center took the leading part and established a chemotherapy exploratory committee, which consists of 4 doctors, 2 nurses and 2 pharmacists, in June, 2006. The department of pharmacy could control all cancer chemotherapy regimens by this system, and lead the proper use of increasing anticancer agents. Inquiries on prescription by the pharmacist contributed to proper medical treatment. The role of the cancer chemotherapy exploratory committee and its outcome are described for the purpose of the prevention of medical accidents in this paper.
Subject(s)
Antineoplastic Agents/administration & dosage , Medication Therapy Management , Neoplasms/drug therapy , Risk Management , Drug Administration Schedule , Hospitals, University , Humans , Japan , Patient Care TeamABSTRACT
Outpatient treatment in the cancer chemotherapy center was begun in April 2005 at the University of Occupational and Environmental Health Hospital. Drugs were prescribed 2,590 times during the past year. Times for intravenous drip for various regimens and outpatient chemotherapy desired by patients showed a rough. The number of incidents was three (0.12%) and no accidents occurred. There were 74 consultations with pharmacists about prescriptions (2.6%) and 286 (11.0%) with nurses. Both types of consultation decreased and their contents were different. The number of consultations about prescriptions by special staff at the cancer chemotherapy center was less than at other departments. Therefore, a system assuring safe management is critically required for the establishment of a system for outpatient cancer chemotherapy treatment.
Subject(s)
Ambulatory Care , Neoplasms/drug therapy , Ambulatory Care/statistics & numerical data , Humans , Infusions, Intravenous , Nursing Staff, Hospital , Pharmacists , Referral and Consultation/statistics & numerical data , Risk AssessmentABSTRACT
At present, one-third of people die of cancer and the number is still increasing in Japan. A safe and effective treatment system is critically required. Recently, the discovery of new drugs and the development of medical oncology promotes out-patient treatment for cancer patients. Out-patient treatment in the cancer chemotherapy center of the University of Occupational and Environmental Health Hospital has been started, and many chemotherapy regimens were verified in this center. Not only different organ-specific chemotherapies but also summarizing the oncology team are necessary for performance of the mission. We describe in this review the characteristics of the cancer chemotherapy center.