Measuring clinical trial-associated workload in a community clinical oncology program.
OBJECTIVE
The ability to quantify clinical trial-associated workload can have a significant impact on the efficiency and success of a research organization. However, methods to effectively estimate the number of research staff needed for clinical trial recruitment, maintenance, compliance, and follow-up are lacking. To address this need, the Wichita Community Clinical Oncology Program (WCCOP) developed and implemented an acuity-based workload assessment tool to facilitate assessment and balancing of workload among its research nursing staff.


METHODS
An acuity-based measurement tool was developed, assigning acuity scores for individual clinical trials using six trial-related determinants. Using trial acuity scores and numbers of patients per trial, acuity scores for individual research nursing staff were then calculated and compared on a monthly basis.


RESULTS
During the 11 years that data were collected, acuity scores increased from 65% to 181%. However, during this same period, WCCOP was able to decrease individual research nurse staff full-time equivalent (FTE) acuity scores and number of patients per FTE. These trends reflect the use of the acuity-based measurement tool to determine actual workload and use of the acuity data to direct hiring decisions.


CONCLUSIONS
Clinical trial workload has been successfully measured and used to guide staffing by one community clinical oncology program. Further research is needed regarding its applicability to other research programs.
National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD; Oncology Nursing Society, Pittsburgh, PA; Wichita Community Clinical Oncology Program, Wichita, KS; and McKesson Specialty Health, The Woodlands, TX.
Marjorie J
MJ
Good
Barbara
B
Lubejko
Keisha
K
Humphries
Andrea
A
Medders
D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003153:Community Health Services; D006801:Humans; D008495:Medical Oncology; D062072:Patient Acuity; D016526:Workload