Telehealth in Oncology: ASCO Standards and Practice Recommendations

Coronavirus or COVID-19 is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in social and economic disruption throughout the entire world Each country is being challenged Although much of the world's focus has been on the rapid spread in Italy, Spain, and the United States, the potential impact on the world's poor, a majority of whom are living in Asia, could be devastating Asia has the world's most densely populated cities, and its developing countries are facing challenges in their socioeconomic and health care systems COVID-19 is quickly overwhelming the fragile and overstretched health systems of low- and low- to middle-income countries With its aging population having chronic diseases and the growing burden of cancer, Asia is facing the dual challenge of controlling the spread of COVID-19 and at the same time providing and maintaining cancer care

https://ascopubs.org/doi/pdfdirect/10.1200/GO.20.00227

Dual Challenge of Cancer and COVID-19: Impact on Health Care and Socioeconomic Systems in Asia Pacific.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a situation unparalleled in our lifetime. As the medical community has attempted to navigate a sea of ever-changing information and policies, this uncertainty has instead bred creativity, community, and evolution. Necessity is the mother of invention, and one of the by-products of our rapidly changing environment is the increased reliance on telemedicine. Here, we discuss our experience with incorporating telemedicine into an urban academic pediatric otolaryngology practice, the challenges that we have encountered, and the principles unique to this population.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0194599820931827

Telemedicine During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Pediatric Otolaryngology Perspective.

This systematic review aims to gather primary data from cancer institutions that have implemented changes to cancer service provision amid the COVID-19 outbreak to inform future intervention and health care facility response strategies. A comprehensive literature search was done on Global Health Medline and EMBASE using pertinent key words and MeSH terms relating to COVID-19 and Cancer service provision. A total of 72 articles were selected for inclusion in this systematic review. Following the narrative synthesis that was conducted of the literature, 6 core themes that encompassed common cancer service intervention adopted by institutions were identified: (1) Testing and Tracking, (2) Outreach and Communication, (3) Protection, (4) Social Distancing (5) Treatment Management, (6) Service Restructuring. Since cancer patients are a high-risk population amid the COVID-19 pandemic, these areas of targeted intervention can be used to inform necessary actions in institutions facing similar risks, based on previous learning from numerous cancer centers globally.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1073274821997425

The Effects of COVID-19 on Cancer Care Provision: A Systematic Review.

The COVID-19 pandemic has produced an unequaled human crisis forcing a radical reorganization in the healthcare system. Otolaryngologists are at high risk of exposure, and changes in medical and surgical activities have reduced the learning opportunity for residents and fellows. We believe that even during COVID-19 crisis it is mandatory to guarantee an optimal training, and here, we propose some strategies, based on our experience, to further increase our trainees’ learning curve. We asked our trainees to fill out an electronic survey about several aspect of their training: a first section focused on the reduction of clinical activities and the perceived impact of the pandemic on residents’ skills; the second part outlined the type of attended training activity and the perceived benefit. Surgical training has been reported by our residents as the activity perceived to be the most contracted during the pandemic. According to residents’ opinion the most useful activities were dissection (n = 8, 53.4% residents) and online journal clubs/webinars (n = 7, 46.6% of residents). Residents’ suggestions included actively participating to tracheostomy procedures on SARS-CoV-2 positive patients, attending lessons held by senior consultants on basic ENT topics and promoting collegial discussion of inpatient clinical cases. Building on this dramatic experience, we must be ready for a global restructuring of the residency program to provide an adequate trainee education for the future surgeons.

/pdf/strategies-to-overcome-limitations-in-otolaryngology-32dyq3shjm.pdf

Strategies to overcome limitations in Otolaryngology residency training during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Multidisciplinary conferences (MDC) are an important component of head and neck oncologic care including diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship. Virtual MDC allows for improved collaboration between providers at distant sites and proper allocation of health care resources in a time of crisis. When approached systematically, a virtual MDC is feasible to design and implement in a large academic medical center with multiple satellite hospitals.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/hed.26195

Transition to a virtual multidisciplinary tumor board during the COVID-19 pandemic: University of Pittsburgh experience.

Objective:To analyze trends in otolaryngology consultations and provide algorithms to guide management during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods:A retrospective cohort study at a single institution tert...

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/00034894211005937

Jennifer L. Anderson

Papers

Transition to a virtual multidisciplinary tumor board during the COVID-19 pandemic: University of Pittsburgh experience.

Otolaryngology Consult Protocols in the Setting of COVID-19: The University of Pittsburgh Approach.

Surgical factors associated with patient-reported quality of life outcomes after free flap reconstruction of the oral cavity.