Optimizing EBRT Workflow: Impact of Physics-Managed, Centralized Task Scheduling on Treatment Timeliness πŸ“

Author: Carl D. Elliston, Michael J. Price, Adam C. Riegel, Yi-Fang Wang πŸ‘¨β€πŸ”¬

Affiliation: Columbia University Irving Medical Center 🌍

Abstract:

Purpose: To quantify the impact on the timely initiation of EBRT patient treatments when a workflow is implemented for which a core team of physicists (CTP) oversees the scheduling of all patient-centric clinical tasks.
Methods: Eleven ARIA Care Paths (CP) were developed to outline the necessary steps for patients receiving EBRT, specifying ownership, order, causality, and timing. CPs were tailored by adjusting the time for each task based on the target first treatment date and the minimum required time for task completion. Once a patient is simulated, an in-house web-based tool is used to access physician, planning, physics, and RTT resources in addition to patient information. The system assists in assigning a CP in ARIA and automatically notifies task owners. A preliminary analysis compared CP-scheduled versus actual treatment start dates three months before and after implementing the workflow.
Results: Post-implementation, the number of patients starting EBRT greater than 1.5 x IQR days was reduced by β‰ˆ80%, with β‰ˆ93% starting within 1.5 days. The β€œLateness” of MD-owned tasks was also reduced (β‰ˆ38%).
Conclusion: With the assistance of in-house developed tools, shifting patient scheduling of requisite pre-treatment tasks to CTP has demonstrated increased efficiencies and improved timeliness of initiating EBRT.

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