PHY week 7+8. Success at the Acute Oncology Teaching Day

The winter days and nights have all blended into one big slump. I wake up and it is dark, drive to Southampton then get out of work and it is dark, drive back to Portsmouth.

Last week, sunshine came in form of an 8-lecture teaching day. The Acute Oncology Teaching Day – my pride and joy.

Born out of frustration from experiences wherein other medical teams have reservations in looking after patients with cancer (this is a very generalised statement). I assumed that it is because non-Oncology health professionals are not very confident in dealing with medical issues that cancer patients present with. And yet, the incidence of malignancy is growing every year, the treatments that are being developed are exponentially growing each year, therefore the cancer itself or the treatments can potentially cause problems, therefore all healthcare professionals should have a good/basic level of understanding how to look after patients with cancer. So as a goal, I thought…

Why don’t we teach all of them how to look after our patients? For free.

So twice a year, for two years now, we set up a teaching day of various Acute Oncology topics. Last week was the 5th go-around. We invite trainee and non-trainee doctors, nurses, GPs and GP trainees, Physician Associates, medical students, allied health professionals. Eight carefully-curated lectures by different specialists. This time around, one of the speakers was poorly and I had to sub in, ending up giving two back to back lectures at the end of the day.

Maximum Benefit

When I run projects, I ensure that maximum benefit amongst all that are involved is achieved. The Acute Oncology Teaching Day is a prime example.

Me – Of course I get most of the glory and it is something I am very proud of and I hope to carry on for as long as I can.

Aspiring Oncology Trainees – I set up a committee of doctors who are interested in pursuing a career in Oncology. I train them how to run this event and delegate as much as I can. I then make sure that we get a quality improvement project done or a poster that can be presented at a conference nationally or internationally (which we have), and I write them a letter of appreciation. All so they can add to their CV and use to gain points for their Oncology application (Commitment to Specialty).

Guest Speakers – They are either Consultants or Registrars. At the end, we collate the feedback from the audience and add it to their letters of appreciation. This again can be added to their CV and yearly appraisals.

Healthcare Professionals – FREE Oncology Teaching, where there is virtually none in the Wessex deanery. Other places across the country charge at least £150!

Patients – Hopefully, through these teaching days, the healthcare professionals would have had a better understanding of the problems the disease or the treatments can cause, and that they can appropriately manage (before they call the Oncologists).

Goal Accomplished…

We receive numerous positive feedback and messages encouraging us to keep going. But today, I received a rather special email from one of the attendees…

This is the very reason why I have set up the Acute Oncology Teaching. Onwards.

Project Pass Physics update. I am now in answering as many questions as possible mode. Using the Raphex question bank. They are hard, but I’m hoping I will learn more using these.