Open AccessBuilding a Dream: Creating an Oncology Day/Evening Hospital
Author(s) -
Karen Fletcher,
Vivian Painter
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
nursing leadership
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.17
H-Index - 28
eISSN - 1929-6355
pISSN - 1910-622X
DOI - 10.12927/cjnl.2002.19147
Subject(s) - medicine , ambulatory , evening , ambulatory care , inpatient care , modalities , economic shortage , intensive care medicine , emergency medicine , health care , medical emergency , social science , linguistics , physics , philosophy , astronomy , sociology , government (linguistics) , economics , economic growth
The demand for inpatient beds has reached and often exceeds capacity producing waiting lists for cancer care. There is a need to explore alternative approaches to oncology treatment. The Oncology Day/Evening Hospital (ODEH), originally envisioned in 1995 as a joint project between an ambulatory cancer centre and a large teaching hospital, is an important cancer treatment initiative offering extended hours of ambulatory oncology treatment on days, evenings, weekends and statutory holidays. A review of current inpatient treatment modalities revealed that many patients receiving inpatient therapy could be safely and effectively managed in the ambulatory setting if treatment regimens were modified and if ambulatory hours of operation were extended. Healthcare improvements expected were: appropriate movement of inpatient activity to the ambulatory setting; more opportunities for patient choice in treatment time thereby allowing for maintenance of normal living; better quality of life for patients through prevention of hospitalization; decrease in treatment waiting times; consolidation of patients into an ambulatory oncology treatment setting as opposed to utilization of adult medicine units; and more rational inpatient bed utilization with reduction of admissions and intra-treatment transfers. This article describes our experience in building a dream, the challenges and lessons learned in implementing a better way to deliver oncology care in an environment of rapid change and staff shortages.