RADIATION THERAPY PATIENT CARE RECORD
The Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) has published a revised tool for documenting nursing care for the radiation therapy patient. The tool contains recommendations that reflect ONS's judgment regarding the state of general knowledge and practice in the field to date. It is comprehensive and user friendly and is provided in a folder including hard copy and CD. Initially users may reproduce the forms in two ways: printing from the included CD or photocopying the hard copy. Any reproduction must retain the copyright statement that appears on the bottom of each page. For more information on this tool you may contact the Oncology Nursing Society, 501 Holiday Dr, Pittsburgh, PA 15220-2749.
VAP CHOLESTEROL TEST
The VAP Expanded Cholesterol Test by Atherotech has recently published a study showing VAP's use in tailoring drug therapy that may reduce cardiovascular events up to 70%. It allows healthcare providers to customize drug therapy to fix multiple cholesterol abnormalities rather than just treating elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. The study was conducted at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. Atherotech is a leading cardiodiagnostic company and specialty reference laboratory. The company's VAP Cholesterol Test, a new standard of care in for cholesterol risk assessment, is simple to perform and is reimbursed by a growing number of insurers and managed care organizations. For more information, visit http://www.thevaptest.com. For a copy of the study, contact Sullivan & Associates for Atherotech, Barbara Sullivan, 714-74-6174 or bsullivan@ sullivanpr.com.
ABBOKINASE
Abbot Laboratories has received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to reintroduce Abbokinase (urokinase) for the treatment of pulmonary embolism. It is a thrombolytic therapy used to dissolve blood clots. Initially it was approved in 1978 and used to treat an estimated 4 million patients. Manufacturing was suspended in 1999 to address FDA issues with manufacturing of the product and to ensure compliance with the FDA's current manufacturing practice (cGMP). For other information on Abbokinase and the company, please visit http://www.abbott.com.
ANTITOBACCO USE
Pritchett & Hull Associates has produced a series of 4 Anti-Tobacco Use patient education tearpads. The series includes Facts About Tobacco Use (472), Learning About Nicotine Withdrawal (473), Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) (471), and Tobacco Use Quit Plan (474). They are designed to help tobacco users of different levels: those who don't want to quit, those who want to but are not ready, those who are ready to quit, and those who have relapsed but are ready to try again. You may preview these items at http://www.p-h.com (enter item #s) or call 800-241-4925. There is a wholesale cost available to professionals.
LAST ACTS
Last Acts is a national coalition to improve care and caring near the end of life. In July 2002, following the recommendation of the Institute of Medicine, the coalition issued a national blueprint calling for emphasis on "Palliative Care for Terminally Ill Children." It was estimated that nearly 400,000 US children live annually with chronic life-threatening conditions, 53,000 of whom will die each year. Only 10% will receive any palliative care, which treats the whole patient. For more information on these guidelines, contact National Program Office Partnership for Caring, Inc., 800-341-0050.