August 27 is once again the Cancer Council’s Daffodil Day Appeal raising funds for cancer research across Australia.

Government organisation Cancer Australia reports that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a rapid increase in in-home care, including home-based intravenous (IV) chemotherapy administration. Cancer Australia says that while there are inherent risks associated with in-home cancer care, patients who receive their treatment at home may help to reduce the risk of acute care facilities being overwhelmed during the pandemic and better utilise healthcare resources.

What’s more, many cancer patients feel more comfortable receiving care at home so that they’re not separated from family, friends and familiar surroundings. In-home care is often a great way to alleviate some of the pressures of family caregiving when it comes to cancer, allowing loved ones to focus on emotional support instead of detailed daily activities.

The government is working to prompt considerations and future strategies to support high-value cancer care in the recovery phases of the pandemic. Some of these strategies are outlined below.

System-level strategies

• Developing and implementing policy and guidance for the safe and efficient administration of IV chemotherapy in the home to ensure minimum standards for facilities to deliver chemotherapy are maintained.
• Developing policy and regulatory-level guidance to enable high quality and sustainable provision of home delivery of medications, including oral anticancer therapies, via community pharmacies.
• Undertaking cost-effectiveness evaluations of chemotherapy delivery in the home for the health system.
• Implementing electronic prescribing to improve medication safety and efficiency in the medication management process, by reducing medication errors, through improved prescription legibility, dose calculation and clinical decision support; reducing administrative workloads and improving linkages between clinical information systems.

Service-level strategies

• Developing standardised triage protocols informed by patient-reported outcomes, to assess patient preference and eligibility for home-based care. Whilst this has the potential to reduce clinic visits, assessment of the impact on patient outcomes needs to be undertaken.
• Investing in medical and human resources to enable safe, quality and efficient in-home care for people with cancer.
• Detailed escalation plans are in place for managing treatment complications, in order to ensure the delivery of safe and quality care.

Practitioner-level strategies

• Training for health professionals, including cancer nurses, physicians and pharmacists, to meet standards for adopting in-home oncology models for the provision of delivery, or provision of virtual support in the delivery, of anticancer therapies in patients’ homes.

Patient-level strategies

• Empowering patients and their families to safely self-administer treatments (via oral or subcutaneous routes), with virtual support from healthcare professionals.
• Increasing awareness through patient education of the benefits but also potential risks of home-based oncological care.
• Facilitate remote access to psychosocial support services for patients and their carers.
• Assessing patient acceptability of home-based oncological care and potential barriers to the delivery of optimal cancer care in the home.

Need in-home cancer care for yourself or someone you love? Contact us today on 1300 363 802 or visit our care services page.

#YouAreFlowerPower #DaffodilDay #rightcare #rightathome

Keep up to date with COVID 19 information on the following links:

Australian Government Department of Health

Victorian Health and Human Services

NSW Health

Queensland Health

ACT Health

WA Department of Health

Tasmanian Department of Health

Northern Territory Department of Health

SA Health

Founded in 1995, Right at Home offers in-home companionship and personal care, and assistance to seniors (elderly and aged care), and any adult who needs our care at home including adults living with a disability who want to continue to live independently or age in their home. Right at Home is your local expert for issues related to caring for your loved ones and is dedicated to keeping you informed about home care. With no admin or subscription fees Right at Home allows you to get more care from your package or budget.

Right at Home is a 'My Aged Care' government-approved, home care provider for levels 1-4 and offers flexible in-home care services such as nursing care, after hospital care, post-operative care, respite care, dementia and Alzheimer's care. Right at Home also offers assistance with daily living and personal care such as grooming, hygiene, transport, shopping, meal prep, domestic services and social support, so your loved one can enjoy a more independent, vibrant life. Our nurses and caregivers are screened, highly trained, and insured prior to entering your home so you can trust us with the caregiving while you focus on your loved one.

To find out more, please give us a call on 1300 363 802 or visit our website.

Right at Home Offices in Australia: Sydney Lower North Shore; Sydney Upper North Shore; Sydney Central and Eastern Suburbs; Sydney Northern Beaches; Sydney Norwest; Sydney The Hills; Padstow St George; Macarthur Penrith; Newcastle; Hunter & Port Stephens; Southern NSW; Toowoomba- Darling Downs; Sunshine Coast and Gympie; Mackay; Central Queensland; Townsville; Far North Queensland; Gold Coast South; Gold Coast North; Northern Rivers; Brisbane Bayside; Brisbane South; Brisbane North; Brisbane West; Perth Midland; Perth Northern Suburbs; Perth West Coast: Kalgoorlie Wheatbelt; Moreton Bay Region; Sydney Inner West; Sydney Ryde; Greater Logan