Congress Abstracts 2006

218

CLINICAL TRIAL FLOW DIAGRAMS: A "SNAP-SHOT" APPROACH TO CLINICAL TRIALS. Pam Carney, RN, BSN, OCN^® , Teresa Knoop, MSN, RN, AOCN^®, Gloria Cherry, RN, BS, James Whitlock, MD, and Anna Belle Leiserson, AMLS, Vanderbilt Ingram Cancer Center, Nashville, TN.

Less than 3% of adult cancer patients enroll in clinical trials. However, it is estimated that 12%-44% would be eligible to participate. Many barriers to clinical trial participation have been identified including lack of information or misinformation about access and eligibility. The oncology nurse plays a pivotal role in clinical trial recruitment and enrollment. Regardless of the clinical setting, oncology nurses should be knowledgeable about the availability of research based cancer treatment and must have access to reliable and current clinical trial information.

At this NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center approximately two hundred clinical trials are enrolling at any given time. It is challenging for the research teams to keep the nurses current on the ever changing enrollment status and eligibility criteria for each trial. A project was initiated to design a tool to enable the nurse to quickly identify trial availability, prioritization and accrual status. At this NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center approximately two hundred clinical trials are enrolling at any given time. It is challenging for the research teams to keep the nurses current on the ever changing enrollment status and eligibility criteria for each trial. A project was initiated to design a tool to enable the nurse to quickly identify trial availability, prioritization and accrual status.

Flow diagrams were developed for each type of cancer for which clinical trials were available. The layout utilizes a tree format with "branches" for prevention/detection, resectability, stage, prior treatment and other site appropriate criteria. The title of the clinical trial appears in a box that is color coded to identify accrual status: open, pending or on hold. To enhance access, the flow diagrams are on the cancer center web site and are updated regularly to reflect the current status. Web access allows viewing of trial summaries and eligibility criteria.

The flow diagrams provide the oncology nurse with a "snap shot" of site-specific clinical trials. Nurses and physicians can view the diagrams in patient care areas on the cancer center intranet thereby gaining access to current and reliable clinical trial information. Data demonstrates that the flow diagrams are in the top twenty most frequently visited areas on this center's web site.

The flow diagrams have become an invaluable internal tool for oncology nurses and the healthcare team to promote clinical trial enrollment. Additionally, physicians and nurses in community based practice can view the site-specific flow diagrams on the cancer center website and quickly determine if there are experimental treatment options available for their patients.