Treatment Plan Evaluation Workshops for Residents: Learning the ROPES (Radiation Oncology Plan Evaluation School)

Abstract

Background Plan evaluation is a key component of radiation oncology practice, yet many residents and new attendings are not comfortable with plan review due to insufficient experience during residency. According to a recent needs assessment of treatment planning education for residents, 24% of respondents were not at all or only slightly comfortable evaluating treatment plans. Several tools have been created to improve teaching of plan evaluation, yet a standardized curriculum for radiation oncology residency programs is lacking. We are creating disease site-specific educational material to teach plan evaluation, combining didactics and case-based questions. Methods Through a ROECSG GME Working Group collaboration, we will develop teaching material about treatment plan evaluation, utilizing Kern's Curriculum design. The material will be provided to individual residency programs to host a workshop for residents. Each workshop will focus on a single disease site and should be directed by an attending with expertise in reviewing radiation treatment plans for that site. Each teaching set will be organized according to the CB-CHOP paradigm. They will begin with informational slides, to be delivered in traditional lecture format, and will be followed by multiple case-based questions. The questions will include screenshots of treatment plans, dose volume histograms, and goal sheets, and will address the material covered in the didactic portion. To start, we will create workshop materials for the following: lung, head and neck, breast, and gynecologic malignancies. Results We will deliver pre- and post-surveys to residents among participating programs. Surveys will consist of a subjective portion to assess confidence level in independent plan review (evaluating plan, deciding treatment planning priorities, requesting changes to plans, etc.) and an objective section to evaluate impact on trainee knowledge about plan evaluation. We hypothesize that participation in these workshops will improve sense of preparation and knowledge about plan review. We aim to reduce the fraction of residents with little or no comfort evaluating treatment plans to less than 5%. Discussion This initiative represents the first attempt to provide standardized education for radiation treatment plan evaluation for residents. By creating the educational material in advance and disseminating among residency programs, we will facilitate more consistent training in plan review among radiation oncology residents. Improving plan evaluation can potentially ease the transition to practice for new attendings and may lead to better radiation treatments for patients. Plan evaluation is a key component of radiation oncology practice, yet many residents and new attendings are not comfortable with plan review due to insufficient experience during residency. According to a recent needs assessment of treatment planning education for residents, 24% of respondents were not at all or only slightly comfortable evaluating treatment plans. Several tools have been created to improve teaching of plan evaluation, yet a standardized curriculum for radiation oncology residency programs is lacking. We are creating disease site-specific educational material to teach plan evaluation, combining didactics and case-based questions. Through a ROECSG GME Working Group collaboration, we will develop teaching material about treatment plan evaluation, utilizing Kern's Curriculum design. The material will be provided to individual residency programs to host a workshop for residents. Each workshop will focus on a single disease site and should be directed by an attending with expertise in reviewing radiation treatment plans for that site. Each teaching set will be organized according to the CB-CHOP paradigm. They will begin with informational slides, to be delivered in traditional lecture format, and will be followed by multiple case-based questions. The questions will include screenshots of treatment plans, dose volume histograms, and goal sheets, and will address the material covered in the didactic portion. To start, we will create workshop materials for the following: lung, head and neck, breast, and gynecologic malignancies. We will deliver pre- and post-surveys to residents among participating programs. Surveys will consist of a subjective portion to assess confidence level in independent plan review (evaluating plan, deciding treatment planning priorities, requesting changes to plans, etc.) and an objective section to evaluate impact on trainee knowledge about plan evaluation. We hypothesize that participation in these workshops will improve sense of preparation and knowledge about plan review. We aim to reduce the fraction of residents with little or no comfort evaluating treatment plans to less than 5%. This initiative represents the first attempt to provide standardized education for radiation treatment plan evaluation for residents. By creating the educational material in advance and disseminating among residency programs, we will facilitate more consistent training in plan review among radiation oncology residents. Improving plan evaluation can potentially ease the transition to practice for new attendings and may lead to better radiation treatments for patients.