Late effects care as an emerging clinical specialty in paediatric oncology: how to prepare the workforce?

Curr Opin Support Palliat Care. 2013 Sep;7(3):296-302. doi: 10.1097/SPC.0b013e3283640f87.

Abstract

Purpose of review: There is an increasing recognition of the healthcare needs of long-term childhood and adolescent cancer survivors, but less information is known about the education and training needs of healthcare professionals.

Recent findings: The need for the provision of late effects care for this cohort of patients is now universally accepted by the paediatric cancer community in the western world. As evidence of healthcare needs become known, internationally agreed evidence-based screening practices are emerging.

Summary: The next clear step is to ensure that clinical staff, medical and nursing alike, are sufficiently prepared to provide safe, compassionate, patient-centred, contemporaneous and clinically effective late effects care. This review considers evidence for existing educational approaches and considers how we may prepare the workforce.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Clinical Competence
  • Health Status
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Inservice Training
  • Neoplasms / physiopathology*
  • Neoplasms / psychology*
  • Pediatric Nursing / education
  • Pediatric Nursing / organization & administration*
  • Pediatrics / education
  • Pediatrics / organization & administration*
  • Survivors*