Introduction
In 2008-2009, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) implemented a consensus-based process to develop standards for safe administration of chemotherapy to adult patients in the outpatient setting.
The ASCO/ONS chemotherapy safety standards development process was initiated with a review of the literature and convening of a workshop of 40 multidisciplinary oncology professionals, representing diverse practice settings, including oncologists, nurses, pharmacists, social workers, practice administrators and patient advocates. A complete list of workshop participants can be found here. Workshop participants used a structured consensus building and voting process that culminated in a draft of 34 safety standards. The draft standards were then posted for six weeks of public comment. All 322 submitted comments were logged and used to select and refine the final standards set. To read the JCO article fully describing the ASCO/ONS chemotherapy safety standards process for development, consensus and refinement, and a discussion of the standards and results, click here.
The ASCO/ONS chemotherapy safety standards are intended to reduce the risk of errors when providing patients with chemotherapy and provide a framework for best practices in cancer care. Specifically, they can inform practice policies and procedures, internal quality assessment, and external quality monitoring. The standards are applicable to all outpatient oncology settings and are voluntary. To view the standards:
ASCO/ONS Standards for Safe Chemotherapy Administration
ASCO suggests that hematology-oncology practice staff assess their own compliance with each of the ASCO/ONS chemotherapy safety standards. To help oncology practices review and develop policies and procedures needed to adhere to these chemotherapy safety standards, ASCO has developed an online guide of sample policies. The sample policies are posted in Word format to facilitate use in practice. The entire document, or specific sections, can be copied, saved or modified. To view the sample policies based on the ASCO/ONS chemotherapy safety standards:
Sample Policies for Safe Administration of Chemotherapy
For more information contact: ASCO’s Cancer Policy & Clinical Affairs Department, at 571-483-1670 or cancerquality@asco.org.
Disclaimer: These standards related to patient safety for chemotherapy administration in the ambulatory/outpatient setting were developed jointly by ONS and ASCO using a consensus process. The standards are intended to reflect current thinking on best practices, but are not comprehensive and do not account for individual patient variation. It is the responsibility of each administering agent to determine the best methods for chemotherapy administration for each patient. The standards are not medical advice or legal advice. To the extent that the standards conflict with applicable federal, state, or local legal requirements, practitioners should comply with those requirements. The administering agent is solely responsible for, and assumes all risks of, administering chemotherapy drugs notwithstanding any adherence to the standards herein. ASCO and ONS disclaim any and all liability with respect to the standards and the execution of the standards by any party.
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