Behind the Scenes — July 2020

From the Telehealth Director

Dear UNC Cancer Network Friends,

Caring for a family member or friend with cancer can be extremely daunting: being a patient advocate, preparing meals, managing medications, providing transportation to medical visits, communicating with family members, and much more.

I want to bring your attention to an established program called Caregiver Conversations, that is sponsored by the Comprehensive Cancer Support Program (CCSP) at the N.C. Cancer Hospital. Caregiver Conversations is designed to provide free, expert support to caregivers of patients with cancer. Weekly meetings are facilitated by social workers, psychologists, and counselors on staff at the N.C. Cancer Hospital. All Caregiver Conversations sessions are run in a group format. These meetings are currently available for caregivers located anywhere in North Carolina, via Zoom. Meetings are one hour in length and take place on Tuesdays at 2:00 PM, EDT. Please visit www.unccn.org/caregiverconversations to register for one or more specific days. For more information about Caregiver Conversations, please contact Loretta Muss at loretta_muss@med.unc.edu.

We have two great professional lectures coming up in July. This Wednesday’s noon lecture is titled Patient-Reported Outcomes (PROs) in Cancer Care. It will be presented by Angela M. Stover, PhD. Details and registration information may be found at https://unclineberger.org/unclcn/event/07082020/.

On July 22nd, also at noon, please join us for Breast Cancer Management in North Carolina, Updates for 2020 with Emily Ray, MD, MPH. Details and registration at https://unclineberger.org/unclcn/event/07222020/.

As always, all professional lectures are free and include specified continuing education credits.

All the best,

Tim

UNCCN’s Lectures and Courses
Benefit Community College Students:
An interview with Lisa Scott, MSN, RN

by Mary E. King

Lisa Scott, MSN, RN, is a Simulation Coordinator and Educator at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, NC. I recently interviewed Lisa about how she and her students benefit from using the UNC Cancer Network’s (UNCCN) Live and Self-Paced, Online Courses, as part of her courses.

What is your teaching philosophy?

My teaching philosophy has evolved over my 13 years of teaching. My early years were guided by the belief that I must pour information into my students through traditional lecturing modalities, with a philosophy I would describe as more pedological versus andrological principles. I’m sure this expert instructor-directed style came from 30 years of pediatric nursing.

In the past seven years of working in the simulation labs, I’ve been able to provide problem-solving learning instead of just content learning. A term I heard years ago at a conference describes my goal. Remind yourself; your adult learners are tuned into WII-FM radio station (What’s In It For Me).

Please share with us your experience with teaching online.

Before the Covid-19 quarantine, my online teaching experience was teaching in an RN-BSN program for one year. As a full-time Simulationist, the transition to online clinical for six weeks was daunting in the beginning. Fortunately, I am part of a 14-member team at Central Piedmont Community College. I am their support and guidance with developing online clinical hours so our students would have the opportunity to complete their semester. By utilizing the same format as face-to-face Sim Lab, Prep, Pre-Brief, Scenario, Debrief, Evaluation and Self-reflection, and the help of free services, like UNCCN, our students accrued enough clinical hours to meet all of our Student Learning Outcomes (SLO).

How are you planning to use the UNCCN lectures with your courses?

During the quarantine, our school used 2 of the case studies provided by UNCC. The Care of the Patient with Lung Cancer was used during a second-semester course (NUR 112) that covers the concepts of oxygenation and cellular regulation. The Care of the Patient with Breast Cancer was used in a third-semester course (NUR 211) that covers cellular regulation, comfort, and health & wellness.

The student assignment included watching the lecture, completing the UNCC worksheet, participating in a Web-Ex debriefing, a self-reflection exercise, and an evaluation of the assignment.

Do you think adding the UNCCN lectures will enhance the teaching and learning experience?

As we enter the Fall 2020 semester, there most likely be restrictions that will impact student access to the hospital. I anticipate that nursing schools will still need to use alternate sources to meet the clinical needs of our students.

Prior to the quarantine, I attended the UNCCN online-workshops for my learning. And then one day when considering how to provide professional learning opportunities to our students, it dawned on me that the very resource I used could be used for students.

How will adding these courses help you to engage your students more effectively?

One of the goals of having students participate in a continuing education activity is introducing them to how a registered nurse can meet their ongoing professional education requirements.

Is there anything else that you would like to share with our readers?

If anyone would like to discuss our use of UNC Cancer Network or any of the other ways, the Christa A. Overcash Associate Nursing Program met and will continue to meet our students’ clinical needs during these unprecedented times. Lisa Scott can be reached via email.

Upcoming Live Events

July 8, 2020 | 12:00–1:00 pm

Angela M. Stover, PhD

Patient-Reported Outcomes (PROs) in Cancer Care
unccn.org/07082020

Dr. Angela Stover will discuss Patient Reported Outcomes (PRO) reporting within the oncology setting. PRO reporting involves receiving information directly from patients and permitting healthcare professionals to treat the whole patient through personal assessments of symptoms and of daily health status. She will emphasize PROs outside the clinic and will then report on the pilot ePRO rollout at UNC Health Care (where PROs are collected in the clinic).

 

July 22, 2020 | 12:00–1:00 pm

Emily Ray, MD, MPH

Breast Cancer Management in North Carolina: Updates for 2020
unccn.org/07222020

Dr. Emily Ray, from the UNC Lineberger Breast Oncology group, will describe relevant updates in systemic therapy for breast cancers for health care providers throughout the state of North Carolina.

 

Our lecture calendar can be found at https://unclineberger.org/unclcn/calendars/telehealth-lectures/.

Recent Additions to the Learning Portal

Deborah Mayer, PhD, RN, AOCN, FAAN

Delivering Survivorship Care in North Carolina

An aging population, a growing number of cancer survivors, and a projected shortage of cancer care providers will result in a challenge in delivering the care for cancer survivors in the United States if systemic changes are not made, according to a commentary in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Mayer will discuss these issues with particular consideration to providing cancer survivorship care in North Carolina.

 

Siddharth Sheth, DO, MPH

Head and Neck Cancer Management in North Carolina: Updates for 2020

Dr. Siddharth Sheth from the UNC Lineberger Head and Neck Oncology group will describe relevant updates in systemic therapy for head and neck cancers for health care providers throughout the state of North Carolina. Additional topical management considerations or recommendations for this patient population may also be presented.

 

These and other Self-Paced, Online Courses are on our Learning Portal