Asco clinical trial workshops

I have shared in my presentations how to prepare and plan for an audit, project management, Good Clinical Practices GCP , confidentiality and data management, the elements of informed consent, and several other topics. All of these topics are important, but I still take time to emphasize the role each member plays in the success of a clinical trial and the importance of a multidisciplinary team, not only in the practice of standard patient care but in the management of clinical trials.

In this session, nurses learned about clinical trials and the crucial role they have to play in their success. Previous workshops had never featured such a dedicated session for nurses. I also took great pleasure in reconnecting with some of my colleagues whom I had met at the very first ICTW in Punta del Este, and hearing about the progress they had made in the field. I learned that nurses had been empowered enough that they had brought many ideas to their Ministry of Health. I had the honor of meeting with the dean of the School of Nursing at the Universidad de la Republica.

The Workshop provides: Daily guidance and critiques on the development of a clinical trial protocol and informed consent documentation that participants will submit to their IRB. One-on-one mentoring from an experienced and diverse roster of faculty members actively engaged in clinical trials, including biostatisticians and patient advocacy groups. Advice and guidance on career development, both one-on-one and in small group settings Opportunities to forge strong and diverse networks among other Workshop participants and faculty.

ASCO will fund travel expenses for three to four volunteer faculty, who collaborate with local faculty to provide a comprehensive day teaching program. The course was held in partnership with the Turkish Medical Oncology Society and the program was developed through teleconferences with local organizers, in particular Mehmet Artac, MD, an academic medical oncologist from Necmettin Erbakan University, in Konya, Turkey.

I had an enjoyable meeting with Dr. Artac about 6 months earlier when I was invited to speak at a GU cancer symposium in Antalya, on the southern coast of Turkey.

For the workshop venue, our hosts selected a pleasant, small hotel on the Golden Horn, a waterway that is surrounded by the historic city and opens into the Bosporus. About 50 young clinicians attended as participants, most coming from Turkey, but also from neighboring countries, including Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq.

The course is designed to teach skills in implementation of clinical research and targets research in emerging economies. Looks like a good agenda, and the purpose is an important one.

We all can learn from each other, and the emerging problem of cancer in low- and middle-income countries dearly needs increased attention from the clinical trials community.

Agree completely!