Continuous quality improvement of nutrition management during radiotherapy in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma

• Published in: Nursing open Vol. 8; no. 6; pp. 3261 - 3270
• Main Authors: Ji, Juan, Jiang, Dan‐dan, Xu, Zhe, Yang, Yi‐qun, Qian, Ke‐yan, Zhang, Mu‐xing
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.11.2021; John Wiley and Sons Inc; Wiley
• Subjects: Calories; Cancer; continuous quality improvement; Data collection; Diet; FOCUS‐PDCA; Hospitals; Malnutrition; Mucositis; nasopharyngeal carcinoma; Nurses; Nursing; Nutrition education; nutrition management; Nutrition research; Nutritional status; Parenteral nutrition; Patients; Quality improvement; Quality management; Quality of life; Radiation therapy; radiotherapy; Throat cancer; Total quality; China
• ISSN: 2054-1058; 2054-1058
• DOI: 10.1002/nop2.1039

Aim To investigate the effect of implementing a model for continuous quality improvement in the nutritional management of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) treated with radiotherapy. Design methods In the intervention group (n = 77), a model for the continuous quality improvement of efforts at nutrition management was implemented. These efforts included the development of a new process for nutrition management, a system to provide nutritional support and the use of targeted intervention plans to improve nutrition. The time from diagnosis to the administration of radiation therapy, the severity of oral mucositis and dietary factors were recorded and considered in the development of targeted nutrition intervention and nutrition education. The control group (n = 71) followed the original procedures for nutrition management. Results The study found that the CQI model can decrease the severity of oral mucositis caused by radiation and improve nutritional status in affected patients.