Construction and validation of the Emergency Oncology Scale (EMOnco), a risk rating protocol for the triage of cancer patients in acute care settings.

BACKGROUND: Manfredini et al. demonstrate that the new rating protocol, EMOnco, can triage of cancer patients in acute care settings safely, considering their cancer type, stage and treatment histories and oncological emergencies, enabling the appropriate classification from high-risk patients to non-urgent patients. BACKGROUND: ■ EMOnco considers variables related to the cancer history and treatment. BACKGROUND: ■ Triages patients in the emergency care in less than three minutes. BACKGROUND: ■ Cancer patients need priority care regarding infection, and this protocol consider it. BACKGROUND: ■ EMOnco has shown to be a valid and reliable scale for the triage of oncological patients in the emergency room or acute care clinics. OBJECTIVE: To validate a risk rating scale for triaging of cancer patients in emergency rooms that can identify individuals needing urgent care or in imminent worsening of the clinical condition. METHODS: This is a health instrument validation study developed in the emergency care ward of a Brazilian hospital, a referral center for cancer and hematological diseases. We built the Emergency Oncology Scale (EMOnco) based on literature review and a Delphi survey with 20 experienced oncologists (physicians and nurses). We validated the scale by assessing its construct validity, interobserver agreement and reliability after applying them in a convenience sample of all consecutive patients with cancer who visited the ward between August 2017 and January 2018. We compared the EMOnco Scores with those from other scales, used by six trained nurses: the Emergency Severity Index, the Manchester Triage System, and the Karnofsky Performance Status. We also recorded socio-demographic and clinical features and the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) results in the intensive care unit. RESULTS: We included 250 patients with locally advanced or recurrent disease and undergoing chemotherapy. EMOnco screening took 2.24 (± 2.9) minutes in average. The interobserver correlation coefficient was 0.9. EMOnco was highly correlated with Emergency Severity Index (r=0.617) and also correlated with Karnofsky Performance Status (0.420) Manchester Triage System (0.491; p<0.001 for all). CONCLUSION: EMOnco in Portuguese considers variables related to the cancer history and treatment and has proven to be a valid and reliable for the risk classification of oncological patients in emergency care services.

Pandemia de Covid-19 e atendimento especializado em oncologia: relato de experiência / Pandemia de Covid-19 y la atención especializada en oncología: relato de experiencia / The COVID-19 pandemic and specialized oncology care: An experience report

Resumo Introdução A pandemia de Covid-19 trouxe muitos desafios para a assistência oncológica, gerando novos desenhos operacionais nas esferas da gestão e da assistência. Objetivo Descrever experiências de implantação de processos administrativos e assistenciais de instituições prestadoras de atendimento oncológico durante a pandemia da Covid-19. Método Relato de caso, descritivo, qualitativo. As experiências contidas nos relatos compreendem o período de 05 de março a 31 de janeiro de 2021. Os relatos são provenientes de instituições distintas do município de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil. Resultados Os 3 relatos descrevem ações como: triagem dos pacientes para a incorporação de estratégias de telemedicina e tele-enfermagem; preparação de ambientes livres de Covid-19 para a segurança de profissionais e pacientes; reforço às ações educativas na geração de conhecimentos e adoção de comportamentos seguros para equipes de saúde e pacientes, entre outras. Discussão Os relatos descreveram como eixo comum a implementação de ações para viabilizar a segurança dos pacientes, dos profissionais e do meio ambiente, bem como a continuidade da assistência oncológica. A literatura científica e as recomendações dos conselhos, sociedades e organizações foram subsidiárias das medidas instituídas. Conclusão O ineditismo da situação de isolamento social devido ao risco da disseminação da COVID-19 demonstrou-se um campo fecundo para a incorporação de novas estratégias de gestão e assistência em Oncologia. Perdas e danos certamente ocorrerão no processo de assistência oncológica na vigência desta pandemia. Neste contexto, o mapeamento da queda de diagnósticos de câncer bem como das interrupções de tratamento é fundamental para mitigação de suas consequências.

Abstract Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many challenges to oncology care, leading to the implementation of new operational models in health management and care. Objective To describe the experiences related to the implementation of health management and care models in cancer treatment centers during the COVID-19 outbreak. Materials and Methods A qualitative descriptive case report was conducted including experiences from March 5 to January 31, 2021. Reports were provided by different cancer treatment centers in São Paulo, Brazil. Results Actions such as identification of patients eligible for telemedicine and telenursing strategies, preparation of COVID-19-free environments for healthcare professionals and patients, and support for educational actions to increase knowledge and adoption of safety behavior for healthcare professionals and patients were observed in the three reports. Discussion A common element described in the reports is the implementation of actions to improve the safety of healthcare professionals, patients and the environment, as well as the continuity of cancer care. Scientific literature and recommendations of advisory boards, associations and organizations were supplementary to the measures applied. Conclusions Social distancing due to the risk of COVID-19 spread proved to a successful field for the introduction of new health management and care in cancer treatment. Although there will certainly be loss and damage to cancer treatment processes during this pandemic, mapping the drop in cancer diagnosis, as well as treatment interruptions, is essential to mitigate any consequences.

Resumen Introducción La pandemia de Covid-19 trajo muchos desafíos para la atención oncológica, generando nuevos diseños operativos en las esferas de gestión y atención. Objetivo Describir las experiencias de implementación de procesos administrativos y de atención de instituciones proveedoras de atención oncológica durante la pandemia de Covid-19. Métodos Reporte de caso, descriptivo, cualitativo. Las experiencias del reporte cubren el período del 5 de marzo al 31 de enero de 2021. Los informes provienen de diferentes instituciones en el municipio de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil. Resultados Los 3 reportes describen acciones tales como: detección de pacientes para las estrategias de telemedicina y tele enfermería; preparación de entornos libres de Covid-19 para la seguridad de profesionales y pacientes; refuerzo de acciones educativas para generación de conocimiento y adopción de comportamientos seguros para profesionales y pacientes, entre otros. Discusión Los reportes describen como eje común la implementación de acciones para la seguridad de los pacientes, los profesionales y el medio ambiente, así como la continuidad de la atención oncológica. La literatura científica, las recomendaciones de consejos, sociedades y organizaciones fueron subsidiarias de las medidas instituidas. Conclusión La novedad del confinamiento social debido al riesgo de propagación de COVID-19 demostró ser un campo fructífero para la incorporación de nuevas estrategias de gestión y asistencia oncológica. Ciertamente, habrá pérdidas y daños en el proceso de atención oncológica durante esta pandemia. En este contexto, el mapeo de la caída del diagnóstico de cáncer, así como de las interrupciones del tratamiento, es esencial para mitigar sus consecuencias.