Advances in Radiation Oncology (Jul 2021)

Our Experience Leading a Large Medical Physics Practice During the COVID-19 Pandemic

  • Julianne M. Pollard-Larkin, PhD,
  • Tina M. Briere, PhD,
  • Rajat J. Kudchadker, PhD,
  • Ramaswamy Sadagopan, MS,
  • Paige L. Nitsch, MS,
  • Xin A. Wang, PhD,
  • Mohammad Salehpour, PhD,
  • Jihong Wang, PhD,
  • Sastry Vedam, PhD,
  • Christopher L. Nelson, PhD,
  • Narayan Sahoo, PhD,
  • Xiaorong R. Zhu, PhD,
  • Laurence E. Court, PhD,
  • Peter A. Balter, PhD,
  • Ivy J. Robinson, AAS,
  • Jinzhong Yang, PhD,
  • Rebecca M. Howell, PhD,
  • David S. Followill, PhD,
  • Stephen Kry, PhD,
  • Sam A. Beddar, PhD,
  • Mary K. Martel, PhD

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 6, no. 4
p. 100683

Abstract

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Purpose: To provide a series of suggestions for other Medical Physics practices to follow in order to provide effective radiation therapy treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods and Materials: We reviewed our entire Radiation Oncology infrastructure to identify a series of workflows and policy changes that we implemented during the pandemic that yielded more effective practices during this time. Results: We identified a structured list of several suggestions that can help other Medical Physics practices overcome the challenges involved in delivering high quality radiotherapy services during this pandemic. Conclusions: Our facility encompasses 4 smaller Houston Area Locations (HALs), a main campus with 8 distinct services based on treatment site (ie. Thoracic, Head and Neck, Breast, Gastrointestinal, Gynecology, Genitourinary, Hematologic Malignancies, Melanoma and Sarcoma and Central Nervous System/Pediatrics), a Proton Center facility, an MR-Linac, a Gamma Knife clinic and an array of brachytherapy services. Due to the scope of our services, we have gained experience in dealing with the rapidly changing pandemic effects on our clinical practice. Our paper provides a resource to other Medical Physics practices in search of workflows that have been resilient during these challenging times.