Radiation Treatments Just Got a Little Easier

One of the most common frustrations for patients in the hospital and those who have recurring appointments is having to provide identifying information at each visit. These checks are necessary to ensure patient safety, but when the patient sees the same caregivers every day for 6-8 weeks, it gets old.

Patients receiving radiation therapy at the Heptner Cancer Center now get a bar-coded registration card that is scanned at every visit. The card works with special software to tell the staff that the patient has arrived for their appointment and verifies that the correct patient is receiving radiation treatment. In the photo, you can see patient Bert Sutherland take advantage of the registration card system.

“It's much easier for radiation patients. For safety reasons, we always ask identifying information, and with the card they can skip those questions and be seen a little quicker,” said Leigh Worsley, MS, RTT, CMD, Cancer Care Director.

Besides name and birthdate, the registration card contains each patient’s specific medical record number and health history. It also pulls up their treatment plan for radiation therapy and the data that went along with each past visit—something patients find reassuring.

Patients also like that the card announces their arrival, as no one likes to sit in the waiting room wondering if their provider knows they are there. Therapists like this feature, too, as it saves them multiple trips to the waiting room to check for the patient’s arrival. It’s convenience and patient safety, all around!

Learn more about the services at the Heptner Cancer Center at www.cchwyo.org/cancercare.