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Hi,
Yes we used an adapted CSAS form which I can forward to you if you like. We give it to our patients to fill out when they come into the dayward for chemotherapy when they are not seeing the Doctor .
Using the form draws out any important issues that need to addressing. It gives us a base to monitor any changes and gives the patient a chance to talk about how they are feeling and how the last cycle was for them. It prompts the nurse to cover the important points to ensure all chemotherapy is given safely or withheld until medical consultation. Some patients are quite creative with their CSAS and on the back is the nurses part to write about the issues hilighted and the plan, also diagrams of where the cannula has been placed or PORT accessed etc. and what equipment has been used. The New South Wales website also has some examples of assessment tools. You just need to get a log on for the EQUIV site.
Hi there,
We use standard chart that look a the most common side effects for various chemotherapies and undertake an assessment of using the Common Toxicity Criteria. We do this for each cycle looking at the maximum toxicity of each cycle which allows us to compare with each previous cycle. This can highlight when supportive care or drugs should be introduced as well as dose reductions if relevant.
Edited: May 17, 2010 @ 12.06pm
Hi Halima
Kate has sent me the chemotherapy assessment scale. It is in Excel format and you can download it by clicking on the following link:
Chemotherapy Symptom Assessment Scale
Please note that Kate says:
"This is a tool that I think orignally we got from the UK and have adapted it to suit our dayward. Caroline Strafford - our oncology/haemotology clinical nurse specialist and Paul Smith our charge nurse manaager both contributed to the changes. We use it every time the patients don't see the doctors and have found it very effective in assessment, drawing out information and gauging how the patient is doing. So its for our day 8 Gemcitibines, Week 1,2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11 of weekly paclitaxels, weekly vinoralbine and when the patients get their 5FU infusors changed. Also Herceptin etc - we have another place at the front of their notes where we write their blood results or MUGA results etc. The patients or their relatives fill their own forms out and then we sit and discuss any comments or issues we have highlighted, this saves us time. Sometimes patients get a little creative and it can be subjective and we need to delve a little deeper on the information they have given us but it is a very useful tool."
If anyone else has similar tools that they would be willing to share here, please use the 'Contact us form' to get in touch. We would be delighted to host them on CancerNursing.org.
Many thanks to Kate and her colleagues for the document above.
Very best wishes
Ray