Health care professionals who have made the decision to specialize in oncology face a unique set of challenges. Issues such as quality of life and symptom management regularly impact standard of care concerns. City of Hope’s Division of Nursing Research and Education offers several specialized education programs:
Advocating for Clinical Excellence (ACE) Project
Individuals facing a serious illness require competent and compassionate care, with patients confronting a complex interplay of physical, psychological, social, spiritual, existential, medical, financial and social burdens. However, evidence indicates that few health-care providers are adequately prepared for this critical task. The ACE Project is an innovative psycho-oncology educational initiative which aims to change this. The ACE Project is designed to improve palliative care on a multidisciplinary basis through an intensive advocacy and leadership training programs for psychologists, social workers and spiritual care professionals.
End of Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC)
ELNEC is a national education initiative to improve end-of-life care in the United States. The Project provides undergraduate and graduate nursing faculty, CE providers, staff development educators, specialty nurses in pediatrics, oncology, critical care and geriatrics and other nurses with training in end-of-life care so they can teach this essential information to nursing students and practicing nurses. ELNEC trainings are held multiple times each year in locations across the country.
ExCEL in Social WorkExCEL strives to improve the delivery of psychosocial-spiritual care for oncology patients through an innovative social work-specific educational program. ExCEL is a collaborative partnership between the City of Hope, the Association of Oncology Social Work (AOSW) and the Association of Pediatric Oncology Social Workers (APOSW). The investigative team for this five-year National Cancer Institute-funded initiative includes: Shirley Otis-Green, Betty Ferrell, Marcia Grant, Brad Zebrack and Barbara Jones. Pre-conferences to the AOSW and APOSW annual meetings will address critical aspects of quality care while encouraging oncology social workers to meet and exceed the recommendations of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) 2008 Report – “Cancer Care for the Whole Patient: Meeting Psychosocial Health Needs.”
Family Caregivers
The primary aim of this oncology educational initiative is to implement a national education program on family caregiving in cancer. The intent of this program is to improve quality of life and the quality of care for family caregivers who are impacted by a loved one’s cancer across the trajectory of illness. The City of Hope Pain & Palliative Care Resource Center serves as a clearinghouse of information and resources that assist others in improving the quality of pain management and end of life care. Established in 1985 by the Division of Nursing Research and Education, it is a central source of a variety of materials including pain assessment tools, patient education materials, research instruments, quality assurance materials, special population resources, cancer survivorship resources, end of life resources, and other resources.
Pain Resource Nurse (PRN) Training Course
The primary purpose of this course is to prepare individual nurses in a comprehensive training program related to assessment and treatment of pain.
Quality of Life Research in Oncology
This one day interdisciplinary conference is sponsored by the Division of Nursing Research in celebration of the centennial anniversary of the City of Hope National Medical Center and is open to nurses, physicians, social workers, chaplains and psychologists in oncology research or practice.
Southern California Cancer Pain Initiative (SCCPI)
SCCPI is a nonprofit volunteer interdisciplinary organization made up of physicians, nurses, pharmacists, social workers and many other professionals dedicated to the relief of cancer pain. Three newsletters as well as various announcements are sent to the 3,600 SCCPI members every year.
Survivorship Training Course for Nurses
The overall purpose of this educational program is to prepare registered nurses to competently provide and coordinate care for cancer survivors. The program is built around the four recommended IOM components. Adult education theories and institutional change methods will be used to guide participants in implementing changes in survivorship care into their everyday practice.
