June 26, 2009



Dear SIG Member:



Recently, the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) received a letter from the Commission on Cancer (CoC) asking for one new standard that addresses the most clinically relevant issue for our organization or specialty. They are hoping that our feedback will generate discussion and debate and help with the creative process. We, in turn, are asking you, the members of our Special Interest Groups, to submit a proposed standard for consideration.



The Commission advises us that the standard should be clear and concise using simple language. The standard should include a statement of purpose and should state how to measure compliance. Lastly,

the standard should state what documentation is required.



Following are examples of current nursing standards that have been developed by the Commission on Cancer:



Standard 4.4 Nursing care is provided by nurses with specialized knowledge and skills in oncology.

Competency is evaluated annually.



Standard 4.5 An oncology nurse manager or a registered nurse (RN) provides direction to the inpatient medical oncology unit or the functional equivalent as appropriate to the category.



Please note that your ideas will be most helpful to this endeavor. We will take your suggestions for standards to the Commission on Cancer, but there is no guarantee that they will embrace the suggestions. All of the CoC member organizations are being asked to submit standards. The entire standards revision process will occur over the next year with the expectation that the revised standards will be implemented in January 2011. We will continue to ask for your input throughout the process.



You must submit proposed standards by Thursday, July 23, 2009, to Jan Kinzler at jkinzler@ons.org.

Jan is assisting me in gathering this information. If you have any questions, don?t hesitate to contact me at 608-392-7149 or Jan at 412-859-6220.



Thank you for helping with this important process related to the specialty of oncology nursing and oncology care.



Sincerely,

Diane M. Otte

Diane M. Otte, RN, MS, OCN®

ONS Liaison to the Commission on Cancer

To Tina Siebeneck, this is her second year as a Member of the Congress Team. Thanks Tina for your ongoing dedication and support to oncology nursing.