The European Oncology Nursing Society

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The European Oncology Nursing Society

• The role of Nursing in Palliative Care in
  Cancer.
• Jan Foubert
• President EONS

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Cancer nursing in Europe

• Cancer nurses are the largest group of healthcare
  providers in the oncology setting in Europe
• Involved in the prevention and early detection of
  cancer and provision of care at different stages
  of the cancer journey
• Strengthening cancer nursing will bring about
  improvements in care for the millions of European
  citizens who get cancer each year

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European Oncology Nursing Society (EONS)

• Established in 1984
• Promotes practice of cancer nursing
• Involved in educational, research and
  practice-based initiatives
• 32 national societies
• 300 individual nurses
• 17 institutions and agencies

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EONS mission statement

• The mission of the European Oncology Nursing
  Society (EONS) is to add value to the work of its
  individual members and societies in delivering
  care to patients with cancer. It aims to assist
  in the promotion of developing healthy
  communities through influencing, research and
  education.

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EONS strategic plan

• Context of Strategic Plan
• EONS is a European citizen.
• It exists within many communities across Europe
  and not in isolation.
• Its strength lies in co-operation and
  collaboration with a range of multi-professional
  organisations.

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EONSs partners

• MASCC
• ISNCC
• ONS
• ESO
• FECS
• PCN
• Industry

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Diversity in Cancer Nursing in Europe

• Cancer Nursing is not recognised as a speciality
  in most European countries
• Postgraduate Cancer Nursing Programmes are
  available in most European countries
• most of them have used the EONS core curriculum
• Evidence demonstrating the impact of cancer nurse
  education on cancer care is lacking

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Diversity in Cancer Nursing in Europe

• Most European countries have a national oncology
  Nursing Society
• many have existed for more than 20 years
• membership numbers vary significantly between
  countries (5500-100)
• Most European countries have a nursing shortage
• Nursing, exists as a part-time profession in many
  countries

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Future challenges in Cancer Care

• Ageing population, living with chronic,
  debilitating and life-threatening illness
• Nature of the advanced cancer journey will change
  dramatically as a result of integrated molecular
  diagnosis and therapy
• increased awareness and information about cancer
  amongst the general public
• More informed choice
• Increased patient activism

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Future trends in cancer treatment and care

• Optimised surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy
• Increasing array of supportive pharmacology
• Personalised healthcare
• Different models for follow-up and new focus on
  survival
• Interest in effective approaches to supportive
  and palliative care

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EONS is responding to these challenges through
education and promoting advances in clinical
practice

• EONS will develop and implement, in collaboration
  with members, post basic education and continuing
  education designed to improve knowledge and
  competence in agreed areas of cancer nursing.
• Examples TITAN, NOEP, TARGET, Speak Up,
  Bisphosponates.
• Accreditation, Core curriculum Cancer and Cancer
  in the elderly.

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EONS Policy on Education

• Education is vital as oncology moves forward
• EONS provides framework based on learning needs
  assessment
• Education can only be done in collaboration with
  the local Oncology Nursing Society (ONS)
• Impact is shown by dissemination plans and by
  regular follow up from EONS and NONS
• Education mainly focussed on nurses who routinely
  provide care for patients with cancer.

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Palliative Care Nursing

• Palliative care is both a general approach to
  patient care that should be routinely integrated
  with disease modifying therapies, and a growing
  practice speciality for appropriately trained
  nurses.
• Palliative care is provided by an
  interdisciplinary team, including the nurse.

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Palliative Care in different Treatment settings

• Cancer nurses, in the routine course of providing
  care, are expected to provide basic elements of
  palliative care (e.g. pain and symptom assessment
  and management)
• Palliative care specialist, providing care for
  patients with cancer, require training in
  oncology to provide good care.

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Palliative care Role of the Advanced Practice
Nurse

• Presenting bad news in a context of choices
• Broaching end-of-life discussions an suggesting
  possibilities for choices
• Managing physical care and emotional needs
• Description of specific strategies to address
  care needs
• Facilitating care services and systems
• Choreographing the systems and logistic aspects.

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EONS Activities in relation to palliative care

• Collaboration with ESMO between 1998 and 2001 on
  courses Palliative Cancer Care in Estonia,
  Budapest and Cyprus.
• Accreditation of post-graduate courses
• Palliative Versorgung in Germany
• Short course ESO German Branch entitled
  Weiterbildungslehrgang Palliative Care fur
  Fortgeschrittene Plegende.

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EONSs Interest in Palliative Care

• Patient population through the different member
  societies of EONS
• Focus on patient and family centred care as a
  core element in EONS strategy
• Comprehensive care as a core element in EONS
  education strategy
• Interdisciplinary team since EONS has
  interdisciplinary contacts
• Communication skills as element in major
  education projects

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Important issues for nurses

• Previous patient experiences
• Patients preferences
• Health care quality standards
• Codes of ethics
• Peer-defined guidelines
• Specialty care
• Continuing professional education

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Conclusion

• Diversity presents a key challenge in developing
  cancer nursing in Europe
• Europe is growing and a lot of countries havent
  been reached
• EONS can help palliative care nurses in providing
  a network and forum.
• EONS can help empower nurses
• Leadership and power has biggest impact on local
  level