On the 10th November, the research and development (R&D) team from the ChromaDose research project and members of the Newcastle Cancer Centre Pharmacology Group (NCCPG) carried out a visit to the children’s cancer day unit (Ward 14) and inpatient unit (Wards 3 and 4) at the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle.
The visit was part of a 3-day meeting between NHS, oncology scientists and Vesynta as part of the Chromadose project. The primary aim of the visit was to establish key factors important in the design of the bedside monitoring device by fully understanding the clinical workflows, time pressures, and logistical difficulties on a busy children’s day unit and the contrasts with an inpatient unit.
The clinical and research nurse staff at the RVI were incredibly accommodating and provided very clear and detailed explanations of processes and procedures. The team were also privileged to witness a child on the day unit ‘ring the bell’ signifying their therapy is complete and they would be discharged.
The Chromadose project benefitted from such close collaboration with the clinical teams, and the knowledge obtained fed into a ‘buy a feature’ workshop where multidisciplinary teams were asked to prioritize components of the device being designed. This workshop led to a significant advancement in the understanding of the needs of the device, and harmonised the R&D team with the issues clinical and analytical staff face.
The visit strengthened the network of the Chromadose team and demonstrated the relevance and importance of the device to all, as well as helping to refine the features required to make the project a success.