Oncology Pharmacy: Dedicated to the Safety and Care of Cancer Patients
medications and managing inventory. Oncology pharmacy technicians at the medical center are specially trained to prepare chemotherapy drugs using methods that maintain medication safety and integrity for the patient while preventing exposure of chemotherapy agents to the remainder of the health care team handling and administering these medications. The oncology pharmacies located within the Cancer Institute and Lenoir City Regional Health Center process and dispense all infused cancer care medications for the health system. This occurs in state-of-the-art cleanrooms where room temperatures, pressures and humidities are monitored every 10 minutes to ensure the highest integrity of medications dispensed to patients. The redundancy in these pharmacies allows for seamless patient care in the event of an unexpected downtime.
The Cancer Institute’s Oncology Pharmacy team is comprised of over 25 pharmacists and technicians representing a broad range of expertise and levels of practice, skills and responsibilities. They play an important role in the delivery of care for individuals living with cancer and are often found behind the scenes throughout the health care system. Oncology pharmacists are involved with the care of cancer patients at many phases of their treatment. They work with other care providers to ensure a current and accurate patient medication list, aide in the selection of the most appropriate therapies, monitor the effects of medications prescribed and assist in management of the adverse effects that often accompany cancer treatments. As the care of cancer patients is challenged with many new medications, high-cost therapies, medication shortages and regulatory requirements, the oncology pharmacist is heavily engaged in supporting the clinical team in their efforts to improve overall cancer care and patient quality of life. Pharmacy technicians work under the supervision of licensed pharmacists and assist with a variety of functions, such as preparing medications for dispensing, performing pharmaceutical calculations, delivering
Patient safety is at the forefront of the oncology pharmacists’ responsibilities. These specialized
pharmacists are an integral part of the multidisciplinary team within the Cancer Institute and are responsible for the continued development of electronic order sets for cancer regimens used in patient treatment. Along with their clinical colleagues, they draft all components of the regimens, that includes the cancer medications, supportive care medications, and laboratory requirements needed for patient monitoring to treat cancer patients timely, safely, and appropriately. Each regimen is reviewed by an oncology pharmacist three times before implementation, in addition to reviews by the physician, nursing and IT team. At the Cancer Institute, a pharmacist leads the multidisciplinary Oncology Pharmacy & Therapeutics Subcommittee, making formulary recommendations on the efficacious, safe and cost-effective use of oncology and supportive medications. In addition to their presence within the pharmacy, the medical center staffs oncology pharmacists on the inpatient oncology unit and within the Transplant and Cellular Therapy program.
| Cancer Institute Annual Report 18
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