Book details minimum recommended guidelines for radiation oncology practices

The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) is proud to announce the publication of Safety is No Accident: A Framework for Quality Radiation Oncology and Care, a comprehensive book detailing minimum recommended guidelines for radiation oncology practices. The 52-page document represents an intensive collaboration among 31 specialists from all of the major societies in the radiation oncology field, representing physicians, medical physicists, radiation therapists, medical dosimetrists, nurses and administrators to ensure safe and effective radiation therapy treatment for patients, led by Writing Chairmen Anthony L. Zietman, MD, FASTRO, Jatinder R. Palta, PhD, and Michael L. Steinberg, MD, FASTRO.

Safety is No Accident: A Framework for Quality Radiation Oncology and Care is designed to set standards for the radiation therapy treatment team on the structure, personnel and technical process needed to ensure a safe environment for the delivery of radiation therapy. The book is available online free as a PDF document at www.astro.org/Clinical-Practice/Patient-Safety/Safety-Book/Safety-Is-No-Accident.aspx and in a printed booklet format for purchase.

Safety is No Accident: A Framework for Quality Radiation Oncology and Care is sponsored by ASTRO and was developed and is endorsed by the American Association of Medical Dosimetrists, the American Association of Physicists in Medicine, the American Board of Radiology, the American Brachytherapy Society, the American College of Radiology, the American College of Radiation Oncology, the American Radium Society, ASTRO, the American Society of Radiologic Technologists, the Association of Freestanding Radiation Oncology Centers, the Society of Chairmen of Academic Radiation Oncology Programs and the Society for Radiation Oncology Administrators.

In addition to Drs. Zietman, Palta and Steinberg, authors for Safety is No Accident: A Framework for Quality Radiation Oncology and Care include Albert L. Blumberg, MD, R. Alan Burns, BS, RT, Susan W. Cagle, MS, CMD, Laura A. Dawson, MD, Vanna Marie Dest, MSN, APRN, BC, AOCN, Theodore L. DeWeese, MD, Benedick Fraass, PhD, FASTRO, James M. Galvin, DSc, FASTRO, Arve W. Gillette, MD, Bruce G. Haffty, MD, FASTRO, Sandra E. Hayden, MA, RT(T), Peter A. S. Johnstone, MD, Lisa Ann Kachnic, MD, Theresa Kwiatkowski, BS, RT(T), CMD, Lawrence B. Marks, MD, FASTRO, Karen McGraner, Michael D. Mills, PhD, Christopher J. Moore, BS, CMD, Bhudatt R. Paliwal, PhD, Daniel Pavord, MS, David J. Rice, MD, Mark J. Rivard, PhD, Seth A. Rosenthal, MD, Christopher F. Serago, PhD, Giles C. Toole III, MS, Prabhakar Tripuraneni, MD, FASTRO, Akila N. Viswanathan, MD, MPH, Paul Wallner, DO, FASTRO, and David E. Wazer, MD, FASTRO.

"This book explicitly sets a high bar below which no radiation oncology facility should operate because, as the title states, safety is no accident," said Dr. Zeitman. "We recognize that, in a declining economy, these high expectations may prove to be a challenge, but we believe this interdisciplinary document will help facility leaders advocate on behalf of patients from a position of strength. Safe delivery of radiation therapy treatment is our number one priority because any error is one too many."

The technological tools available today have made planning and treatment delivery more complex and challenging. A key component of Target Safely, ASTRO's patient safety initiative developed in January 2010 to improve the safety and quality of radiation therapy treatment, Safety is No Accident: A Framework for Quality Radiation Oncology and Care will serve as a new, living manifesto of the specialty's dedication to patient care and safety and will be updated regularly.

"Many thanks to the dedicated efforts of Drs. Zietman, Palta and Steinberg for leading the exceptional efforts to issue this important document," said Leonard L. Gunderson, MD, MS, FASTRO, chairman of ASTRO's Board of Directors. "Safety is No Accident is an essential tool for every radiation oncology practice as technologies advance to ensure that patient safety remains the core principal for radiation oncology treatment."