Prostate cancer patients are feeling more connected throughout their journey and have greater access to specialised cancer nurses, thanks to a virtual monitoring system.
Australian Prostate Cancer is proud to be funding this important project, called CAN Connect, which has been made possible thanks to your donations.
The team has created a Digital Remote Symptom Monitoring system that new patients are already using.
CAN Connect nurse consultant Sam Kourakis explained the additional support is available for chemotherapy, radiation therapy and immunotherapy patients treated at the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
“Patients can access the service through a secure portal on their phone,” she said.
“Once registered, they can explore a digital library of common symptoms and side effects with strategies for managing them.”
Check-ins are on days three, seven and 11 where patients log and score the severity of symptoms by using the ‘red, amber, green’ system for easy symptom identification.
“If symptoms score amber or above, we call the patient to discuss concerns and create a care plan for symptom management,” Ms Kourakis said.
“Most patients can self-manage with additional phone support from the nurse, while others are referred for further care.
“This proactive approach enables early symptom detection and boosts patient confidence.”
Based on patient feedback, the team has extended the monitoring period to now include check-ins on days 18 and 25 post treatment.
The pilot project is expected to finish mid-2025 and the team will evaluate the data for improvements once it’s wrapped up.
“Moving forward we hope to secure longevity for this service and encourage all patients receiving anti-cancer therapy to utilise the Remote Symptom Monitoring at all stages of their treatment,” Ms Kourakis said.
The team has already seen an invaluable results, including:
- Patient empowerment which this is mainly achieved through education and normalising symptoms during the recovery phase post-chemotherapy
- Decreased unplanned hospital presentations into the Cancer Rapid Assessment Clinic and the emergency department, through initiating strategies that enable patients to manage side effects in their own home
- Improved overall patient satisfaction in their ability to self-manage post-treatment
- Patient follow up to track further deterioration for escalation or to track improvements.
The CAN Connect team has helped many cancer patients across metro South Australia and rurally, including Port Lincoln, Whyalla, Port Pirie, Ceduna, Mount Gambier, Victor Harbor and Hawker.
