RESEARCH AND NURSE COLLABORATION: BUILDING A FOUNDATION.

Expanding Oncology Research is a focus strategy for the oncology units. The inpatient facility does not have an established research unit, patients are placed in one of the four specialized oncology departments. Nursing works in collaboration with research staff to evaluate protocols, participate in Epic order set builds, and determine patient placement based on the needs of the patient. Due to the increase in patient volume and number of research trials, patient placement on specific units for treatment was be-coming difficult. Nursing and research staff needed a way to quickly work together to meet patient needs. The purpose of this project was to work collaboratively in creating a standard workflow to ensure patients received quality care, clinical staff have resources available, and trial requirements were met. A monthly nurse research collaboration meeting was initiated that identified processes that needed to be established. Interventions included creating a Teams site for collaboration, SharePoint site for research materials and patient admission lists, and utilizing Forms for clinical feedback on barriers. Documents include standard research flow chart, protocol assessment, protocol assignment, patient scheduling, level of care determination, expectations, escalation guide, consistent in-service format, use of Epic Beacon template, and how to update binders on the unit. Streamlining the processes have assisted in working collaboratively with the research department and nursing leadership team. Clinical nurses have seen standardization in in-service documents and education. Barriers that have been reported by clinical staff have been related to Epic builds and pharmacy workflows. Other identified concerns are the lack of an established process with new hires in both nursing and research in utilizing the documents or finding resources available. Restrictions with distancing due to the covid pandemic has also brought to light a need for virtual education or refreshers. As new charge nurses are trained, gaining access to the admission list or knowledge of where to find the list remains a challenge. The team has made progress in establishing processes and resources for nursing and research staff to utilize. We have work to do in creating a process that will ensure all new employees receive education on where to locate resources, what is available, and adding a research pharmacist to the team. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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