Using a whiteboard web application for tracking treatment workflow metrics for dosimetrists and physicians

Area of Science:

• Medical Physics
• Health Informatics
• Radiotherapy Workflow Analysis

Background:

• Radiotherapy treatment planning involves complex, multi-stage processes with varying timelines.
• Optimizing clinical flow and resource allocation in radiotherapy is crucial for efficient patient care.
• Accurate data on treatment planning durations is essential for operational management and patient communication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a framework for collecting detailed clinical flow timelines in radiotherapy.
• To quantify patient volumes and task completion times for dosimetrists and physicians.
• To analyze modality-specific planning times and identify factors influencing them.

Main Methods:

• Development of a web-based tool, "Whiteboard," for real-time communication and time-logging of radiotherapy treatment stages.
• Integration of Whiteboard data with the Aria treatment planning database via the Eclipse Scripting API.
• Collection and analysis of timestamped data over six years, encompassing 110,477 patient statuses and 9,683 treatment courses.

Main Results:

• Quantified mean annual planning volumes and revisions for dosimetrists and physicians.
• Determined physician contour time, showing significant variation by diagnosis and individual.
• Identified median planning times for Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) plans, with longer times for those with more fields.

Conclusions:

• The developed framework and Whiteboard tool provide valuable insights into radiotherapy treatment planning timelines.
• This system can assist facilities with staff planning, workload distribution, and operational efficiency.
• Improved understanding of radiotherapy timelines benefits patients, payers, and healthcare institutions.