Ambulatory approach to cancer care. Part 1: the patient experience

Ambulatory care (AC) is an approach within which inpatient chemotherapy regimens and supportive care are delivered in an outpatient service. Patients receive their treatments and supportive care daily in AC and stay at a nearby hotel or their home, rather than in an inpatient bed. A systematic literature search found a growing amount of literature on AC and the specific regimens used. However, little was found on AC with regard to the patient experience, safety, the benefits and challenges of running an AC service. This series of three articles is based on the authors' experiences of working within an AC service at a major London teaching hospital. The authors discuss the approach and explore how it can improve the patient experience. They look at the roles of the multidisciplinary team and their part in patient safety, and the benefits, challenges and cost considerations of an AC service.