Education Competencies for Integrative Oncology—Results of a Systematic Review and an International and Interprofessional Consensus Procedure

Abstract

Integrative oncology is a burgeoning field and typically provided by a multiprofessional team. To ensure cancer patients receive effective, appropriate, and safe care, health professionals providing integrative cancer care should have a certain set of competencies. The aim of this project was to define core competencies for different health professions involved in integrative oncology. The project consisted of two phases. A systematic literature review on published competencies was performed, and the results informed an international and interprofessional consensus procedure. The second phase consisted of three rounds of consensus procedure and included 28 experts representing 7 different professions (medical doctors, psychologists, nurses, naturopathic doctors, traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, yoga practitioners, patient navigators) as well as patient advocates, public health experts, and members of the Society for Integrative Oncology. A total of 40 integrative medicine competencies were identified in the literature review. These were further complemented by 18 core oncology competencies. The final round of the consensus procedure yielded 37 core competencies in the following categories: knowledge (n = 11), skills (n = 17), and abilities (n = 9). There was an agreement that these competencies are relevant for all participating professions. The integrative oncology core competencies combine both fundamental oncology knowledge and integrative medicine competencies that are necessary to provide effective and safe integrative oncology care for cancer patients. They can be used as a starting point for developing profession-specific learning objectives and to establish integrative oncology education and training programs to meet the needs of cancer patients and health professionals.

Development and Implementation of Situational Judgment Tests as an Evaluation Method for Training Oncology Physicians: Application in the KOKON-KTO Training

“…SJT Answers For each question, the best choice answer was derived from the KOKON-KTO consultation manual [18] taking into account the competencies for Integrative Oncology [20]. To add suitable and realistic distractors, two physicians (one oncology gynecologist and one medical oncologist; both regularly advising cancer patients on CIM), as well as two experienced CIM researchers (psychologist, public health researcher), each added one answer to the SJTs, resulting in five answers per SJT (four distractors, one best choice answer according to KOKON-KTO consultation manual).…”

“…Implementation Process The SJTs were incorporated into the e-learning intervention of the KOKON-KTO training [18]. The e-learning was developed according to learning objectives following constructive alignment rules [23] and the underlying consultation manual of the training [18], as well as international educational competencies for health professionals working in integrative oncology [20].…”

Komplementärmedizin in der gynäkologisch-onkologischen Sprechstunde: Wie mache ich mich fit dafür?

“…So sollten Anbieter und Berater in der integrativen Onkologie u. a. Wissen in onkologischen Therapien haben, Zugang zu evidenzbasierter Information haben, über gute kommunikative Fähigkeiten verfügen und sich auch mit komplementären Therapien auskennen. Die vollständige Liste der Kompetenzen wurde open access publiziert [14].…”

“…Der Kurs beinhaltet auch die relevanten Aspekte des positiv evaluierten KOKON-KTO-Trainings [15]. Zudem wurden die dafür relevanten der o. g. SIO-Kompetenzen [14] berücksichtigt. Literatur…”

Barriers and Facilitators to Integrative Oncology Services in Australia: A Changed Mind Set Required

“…Integrative oncology aims to optimize health, quality of life, and clinical outcomes across the cancer care continuum and to empower people to prevent cancer and become active participants before, during, and beyond cancer treatment.'' 9,10 Research in Australia has mostly focused on TCIM use, patient experiences, and clinical trials. 2,5,[11][12][13][14] Before this study, there was limited information about extent of IO service provision and key determinants influencing implementation and access.…”