Geriatric oncology clinic redesign

In August 2021, the Geriatric Medicine and Cancer Services at St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne (SVHM), in partnership with oncology services at Goulburn Valley Health, implemented the Onco-Geriatric Clinic to provide comprehensive geriatric assessments (CGAs) and management plans for older patients with cancer.

WCMICS assisted SVHM in re-designing the clinic with implementation activities including:

• streamlining the referral process to increase access to the service
• developing promotional resources
• enabling interdisciplinary case discussions for every patient attending the clinic
• tailoring management plans based on the CGA assessment.

Impacts

More than 70 older Victorians have attended the clinic the Onco-Geriatric Clinic since its inception. Of the 30 SVHM patients who attended the clinic, 17 opted for telehealth, indicating the success of the model in empowering patients to choose how and where they receive their care. All patients who attended were enabled to make decisions about their treatments, had assessments of their gait, mobility, cognition, continence, nutrition, and discussion around advance care planning. Personalised plans were developed for each patient, based on individualised interdisciplinary case discussions.