• G Stevens, J Loh, J Kolbe, W Stevens, and C Elder.
• Department of Radiation Oncology, Auckland Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand.
• Intern Med J. 2012 Nov 1; 42 (11): 1213-8.

BackgroundThoracic multidisciplinary meetings (TMDM) are a key component of lung cancer patient management. The optimal design, organisation and function of TMDM are uncertain, and different models may serve different purposes. In the Auckland/Northland region, there are two contemporaneous weekly TMDM using different formats; one is a co-located TMDM (C-TMDM), and the other is a video conference TMDM (V-TMDM) connecting different locations.AimsTo determine whether the rates of referral for radiotherapy (RT) and concordance between recommendations for RT and actual treatment received differed between the two TMDM formats.MethodA retrospective review of demographical and clinical data for cases referred for RT from both TMDM between January-June 2009 and the actual RT delivered.ResultsSeventy-nine and 31 lung cancers were referred for RT from the co-located TMDM and the video conference TMDM respectively. While there were significant differences in demographics related to areas of domicile, there were no significant differences between the TMDM in (i) the proportion of cases referred for RT that received RT, (ii) the intent of treatment recommended by the TMDM and the intent of RT delivered, or (iii) transit times to commencement of RT between cases referred from the different TMDM.ConclusionThe similar results from the different formats of TMDM indicate that cases discussed with the use of e-health technologies are not disadvantaged with respect to recommended therapy nor in the appropriateness of decisions of the TMDM. Use of such technology may reduce the existing disparities in health outcomes between urban and rural patients.© 2012 The Authors; Internal Medicine Journal © 2012 Royal Australasian College of Physicians.

27 keywords...

hide…