Up Front
Telephone Triage
Your Job Is on the Line
As the care of patients with cancer has shifted from the inpatient arena to the outpatient setting, the traditional role of outpatient oncology nurses has also changed. Outpatient oncology nurses must not only be knowledgeable about disease processes and care of patients in the clinic, but they must also be skilled in telephone nursing triage.
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An Open Letter to Nursing Students
I always think about you at the beginning of each semester. I love reading about your experiences on Twitter, Facebook, and blogs. It takes me back to my own similar experiences – wearing a stethoscope but having no clue how to use it, trembling while giving my first injection while pretending I’d done it a million times, choking back tears realizing my first mistake, watching intimate moments in amazement and reverence.
One Nurse's Perspective
What Resources Do You Use for Telephone Nursing Triage?
Ambulatory nurses at Memorial Sloan-Kettering (MSK) Cancer Center use the Ambulatory Care Telephone Triage and Symptom Management Protocol Manual as a guide to manage calls.
Editor's Note
When Oncology Nurses Are Just a Call Away
I once had to lead a project team meeting completely over the phone. By the end of the two calls, I was frustrated and exhausted. I was reminded of that long-ago planning meeting as I read this month’s feature article on telephone triage. These nurses must rely on their ability to discern the severity and significance of what is being reported. In addition, they must develop astute skills to ferret out all of the details needed to fully assess the situation and determine next steps.
Five-Minute In-Service
Strategies for Breaking Bad News to Patients With Cancer
Telling a patient bad news is never easy. Whether sharing information about an initial cancer diagnosis, disease recurrence, evidence of metastatic disease, or a move to hospice care, the healthcare team needs to be sure patients are prepared for the news and understand what it means for them.
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Monoclonal Antibody Improves Survival in Melanoma
Patients who received ipilimumab lived nearly four months longer than those who received an alternative experimental vaccine that previously showed activity against melanoma. The median survival was 10.1 months for ipilimumab versus 6.4 months for the vaccine.