Current Topic:
Information and Communications Technology in Cancer Care
Abstract
Note: Due to unforseen circumstances, there will be a delay before this module will be available.
Information technology is coming into every aspect of healthcare – patient support (on-line information for patients) in the management of patient information (Electronic Health Records) knowledge management (on-line libraries and on-line CPD) diagnosis and decision-making (decision support tools) patient care (imaging, monitoring, electronic prescribing) and of course the administration of care (electronic appointment and bed booking, hospital and practice administration systems) – in fact in every aspect of patient care and health services management.
In this module we offer an introductory view on how Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have changed cancer care, and perhaps more importantly how we can make best use of them to further improve the patient experience and clinical outcomes. We will look at examples of ICTs from oncology drug discovery right through to palliative care support and question if we are making the best use of the technology we have today and consider what new technologies might help us further tomorrow.
The module will provide the participant with examples of ICTS used in Research Clinical Trials, Patient Support, In-Patient care, Home care and Communities of Care and challenge her to think of the best possible uses to which such technologies can be put. Do we use ICTs widely enough to support good uptake of clinical trials? Are we making the most of on-line resources for patient education? Could we make better use of ICTs to free up clinical staff time for more face-to face patient care?
