HOPE+ First Place Winner:
Ryan Lethbridge
Bliss Murphy Cancer Centre and Health Sciences Centre
Ryan Lethbridge was awarded a 1st Place Award for the inaugural HOPE+ category for DANs and Pharmacy Technicians for his project entitled ‘New Hazardous sterile cleanroom pharmacy and New DAN position’.
Ryan leveraged his dual roles in oncology to develop two initiatives aimed at improving workflow and capacity for mixing chemotherapy, and increasing the workload and support for Radiation Oncology, respectively. He designed and built a new Hazardous sterile cleanroom pharmacy and created a new Drug Access Navigator (DAN) position.
Initiative #1: Working with Pharmacy Technicians and Pharmacists, Ryan supervised the construction of a new cleanroom suite that met or exceeded all NAPRA requirements and began operating at the beginning of 2023. The new cleanroom suite boasts 5 biological safety cabinets (BSCs), and its hourly capacity has since doubled. The new hazardous sterile cleanroom pharmacy has enhanced workflow and improved staff safety when preparing and storing chemotherapy drugs.
Initiative #2: Ryan oversaw the training for the new DAN position to support Radiation Oncology as they do not have a clinical pharmacist on their team. In the first year after the creation of the position, over 450 patients benefitted from DAN services, including submitting special authorization requests and obtaining no-cost compassionate chemotherapy drugs. The cost savings to the Regional Oncology Program budget during this period were over $540,000. This year, the DAN position is on track to serve approximately 650 patients.
Overall, the construction of a new sterile cleanroom pharmacy and the creation of a new DAN position have greatly benefited both staff and patients. Staff efficiency and safety have improved with the new Hazardous sterile cleanroom pharmacy and the new DAN position for Radiation Oncology provides a valuable, cost-saving service to patients.
HOPE+ First Place Winner:
Ryan Lethbridge
Bliss Murphy Cancer Centre and Health Sciences Centre
Ryan Lethbridge was awarded a 1st Place Award for the inaugural HOPE+ category for DANs and Pharmacy Technicians for his project entitled ‘New Hazardous sterile cleanroom pharmacy and New DAN position’.
Ryan leveraged his dual roles in oncology to develop two initiatives aimed at improving workflow and capacity for mixing chemotherapy, and increasing the workload and support for Radiation Oncology, respectively. He designed and built a new Hazardous sterile cleanroom pharmacy and created a new Drug Access Navigator (DAN) position.
Initiative #1: Working with Pharmacy Technicians and Pharmacists, Ryan supervised the construction of a new cleanroom suite that met or exceeded all NAPRA requirements and began operating at the beginning of 2023. The new cleanroom suite boasts 5 biological safety cabinets (BSCs), and its hourly capacity has since doubled. The new hazardous sterile cleanroom pharmacy has enhanced workflow and improved staff safety when preparing and storing chemotherapy drugs.
Initiative #2: Ryan oversaw the training for the new DAN position to support Radiation Oncology as they do not have a clinical pharmacist on their team. In the first year after the creation of the position, over 450 patients benefitted from DAN services, including submitting special authorization requests and obtaining no-cost compassionate chemotherapy drugs. The cost savings to the Regional Oncology Program budget during this period were over $540,000. This year, the DAN position is on track to serve approximately 650 patients.
Overall, the construction of a new sterile cleanroom pharmacy and the creation of a new DAN position have greatly benefited both staff and patients. Staff efficiency and safety have improved with the new Hazardous sterile cleanroom pharmacy and the new DAN position for Radiation Oncology provides a valuable, cost-saving service to patients.