[Needs assessment for the establishment of an Oral Therapy Unit]

Introduction: Oncological at home-treatment improves patient quality of life and autonomy but requires close watchfulness of adverse events and compliance to treatment. For nearly ten years, pharmaceutical consultations for home-based anticancer oral therapies patients are proposed on medical request in Avignon-Provence Cancer Institute (ICAP). Organizational changes led us to modify this management by integrating dedicated nurses to create an Oral Therapy Unit (OTU).

Materials et methods: Needs and expectations assessment questionnaires were proposed to healthcare professionals and patients treated by oral therapies. The analysis of these questionnaires allows to set up an OTU, integrating a dedicated nurse, adapted to the expectations of patients and healthcare professionals. About 8 months later, a new evaluation was carried out to assess the impact of this new support for patient care and health professionals' organization.

Results: The results of the studies carried out before OTU implementation highlight the importance of multi-professional support for patients from the start of treatment and during the follow-up. With the new OTU pathway, professionals expect a patient course improvement (94%), a better compliance (88%), a therapeutic accidents reduction (81%) and an improvement in the patient-caregiver relationship (69%). Regarding the organization, 56% of them are expecting to save medical and pharmaceutical time.

Conclusion: The OTU creation in our institution and these new multi-professionals' teams' management of patients has obtained a favourable opinion from healthcare professionals and patient satisfaction.