Creating and maintaining a pool of skilled practitioners:

the ESTRO approach.

Yolande Lievens, MD, PhDGhent University Hospital

European Society for Radiotherapy & Oncology

image  registration & correction

treatment preparation

imaging delineation planning

imaging

treatment delivery

per‐treatment dosimetry

treatment

daily

pre‐treatment dosimetry

state-of-the-art radiotherapy

reduced acute & late toxicity

reduced acute & late toxicity

better tumour control

better tumour control

shorter fractionation schedules

shorter fractionation schedules

more efficient 

resource use

more efficient 

resource use

state-of-the-art radiotherapy

we can only make this happen with adequate (human) resources

available resourcesvs. resources needed

actual gap in radiotherapy provision

Atun et al, Lancet Oncology 2015

Atun et al, Lancet Oncology 2015

how many radiotherapy professionalswill we need to close this gap?

2035

radiation oncologistsmedical physicists & dosimetrists

radiation therapists (RTTs) & nurses

radiotherapy professionals……a heterogeneous landscape

Lievens et al, Radiotherapy & Oncology 2014

we need

innovative education to train these professionals

innovative approaches to define the appropriate skill sets

educational activities of the ESTRO Schoolbackbone = live courses, 41 Radiation Oncology topics460 in total, 62 outside Europe (worldwide)> 40.000 participants, of which about 9.000 worldwide

Education Council

Live programme

Blended learning 

programme

Intercontinental Education programme

CC/UEMS/exams/Fellow programme

Pedagogical programme

Mobility programme

FALCONFALCON

broadeducational offer

Train-The-Trainer Best practice in Radiation Oncology –

a workshop to train RTT trainers

• Train the RTT Trainers 

ESTRO + local faculty

ESTRO + local faculty

• First local course 

local facultylocal faculty

• Consolidation course 

ESTRO + local faculty

ESTRO + local faculty

1‐year programme, interim support

1 decade,49 teams

Advanced Technologies (India  ESTRO‐AROI)Basic Clinical Radiobiology (Australia, RANZCR)

online contouring platform live work shops

- in live courses (2010)- at ESTRO congresses (ESTRO 29, 2010)

online workshops - web-conferences, interactive, over 3 weeks

4 cases available online for ESTRO members life events from 3rd parties

- IAEA - worldwide National Radiotherapy Societies

support for - guidelines- clinical trials- educational research project (IAEA 20450 NA) 

FALCONfellowship in anatomical delineation and contouring

Blended Teaching CoursePositioning and Immobilization for Radiation Therapy

the potential of skilled personnel…ex. prone breast irradiation

Advanced Technology

Dedicated Personnel

Mulliez et al, Radiotherapy & Oncology 2013

Thank you !

Acknowledgements

Richard PötterJesper EriksenChristine Verfaillieover 200 ESTRO teachers annuallythe National Radiotherapy Societies

Mary GospodarowiczEduardo Zubizarreta