Here, we report the process for creating a patient visible quality educational display to highlight the collaborative quality working practices of Radiation Oncology clinicians and staff in the main Radiotherapy Centers throughout three Canadian provinces. These processes are often not visible to patients yet they speak directly to the standards of care delivered at these centers. The Canadian Partnership for Quality Radiotherapy (CPQR) Quality Assurance Guidelines for Canadian Radiation Treatment Programs guided this process. The display slides created were approved by the local Radiation Oncology departmental leadership for each participating medical center as well as patient focus groups and revised with feedback from both perspectives. Of 27 patients/families who evaluated the resulting educational patient display, 70% expressed high engagement in the information presented, and 81% felt the display will be of interest to patients receiving radiotherapy treatment. Patients/families surveyed reported that the displayed content made them feel more informed and more comfortable with their treatments. Survey data from this project indicates that increasing transparency and deepening patient education about the quality working practices behind radiotherapy treatments has the potential to empower patients receiving radiotherapy and increase their confidence in the care they are receiving.
Keywords: Cancer; Patient empowerment; Patient engagement; Patients education; Radiation Oncology; Radiotherapy education.