SU-F-P-03: Management of Time to Treatment Inititation: Case for An Electronic Whiteboard
Purpose: To determine if data mining of an electronic whiteboard improves the management of the Time to Treatment Initiation (TTI) in radiation oncology. Methods: An electronic whiteboard designed to help in managing the planning workflow and improves communication regarding patient planning progress was used to record the dates at which each phase of the planning process began or completed. These are CT Sim date, Plan Start, Physician Review, Physicist Review, Approval for Treatment Delivery, Setup or Verification of Simulation. Results: During clinical implementation, the electronic whiteboard was able to fulfill its primary objective of providing a transparent account of the planning progress of each patient. Peer pressure also meant that individual tasks, such as contouring, were easily brought to the attention of the responsible party and prioritized accordingly. Data mining to analyze the electronic whiteboard per patient (figure 1), per diagnosis (figure 2), per treatment modality (figure 3), per physician (figure 4), per planner (figure 5), etc., added another sophisticated tool in the management of Time to Treatment Initiation without compromising quality of the plans being generated. A longer than necessary time between CT Sim and Plan Start can be discussed among the members of the treatment team as an indication of inadequate/outdated CT Simulator, Contouring Tools, Image Fusion Tools, Other Imaging Studies (MRI, PET/CT) performed, etc. The same for the Plan Start to Physician Review where an extended time than expected may be due unrealistic planning goals, limited planning system features, etc. Conclusion: An Electronic Whiteboard in radiation oncology is not only helping with organizing planning workflow, it is also a potent tool that can be used to reduce the Time to Treatment Initiation by providing the clinic with hard data about the duration of each phase treatment planning as a function of different variable affecting the planning process. The work is supported by the Global Medical Physics Institute.