2972 - Advancing Radiation Oncology Care in Ukraine: Impact of International Observerships on Professional Development and Clinical Practice
Presenter(s)
Y. Lozko1, A. Beznosenko2, V. Poylin3, N. Suchowerska4, V. Iakovenko5, R. Zelinskyi6, R. O. Kowalchuk7, E. C. Ford8, B. Li9, J. B. Strauss10, J. Seuntjens11, D. Breiktreutz12, S. M. Avery13, A. N. Viswanathan14, T. Aland15, R. Koscharsky16, A. Chen17, N. Melnitchouk18, and N. Kovalchuk19; 1Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 2National Cancer Institute, Kyiv, Ukraine, 3Division of Colon & Rectum Surgery, Department of Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center of Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 4Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, Australia, 5Department of Radiation Oncology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, 6Ukrainian Association of Medical Physicists, Ukraine, 7University of Virginia / Riverside Radiosurgery Center, Newport News, VA, 8University of Washington School of Medicine, Fred Hutch Cancer Center, Department of Radiation Oncology, Seattle, WA, 9Department of Radiation Oncology, Fred Hutch Cancer Center, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 10Department of Radiation Oncology, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL, 11Department of Radiation Oncology, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada, 12Sunnybrook Hospital, North York, ON, Canada, 13University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 14Department of Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 15ICON, Brisbane, QLD, Australia, 16ICON Group, Brisbane, QLD, Australia, 17University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, 18Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, 19Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Purpose/Objective(s): This study evaluates the impact of international observerships organized by Help Ukraine Group, Global Medical Knowledge Alliance, and Northwestern Hospital on professional development, knowledge transfer, and clinical practice improvement in radiation oncology in Ukraine.
Materials/Methods: A total of 126 observerships were facilitated for Ukrainian medical professionals during the war across 17 institutions in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Australia. A survey assessed their impact on oncology care, focusing on knowledge gained, lessons learned, and challenges in implementing new techniques. Data analysis identified trends in learning, knowledge dissemination, and the broader effect on clinical practices in Ukraine.
Results:
A total of 86 respondents participated in the survey, 28 of whom were radiation oncology professionals (67.8% radiation oncologists, 32.1% medical physicists). The median observership duration for radiation oncology professionals was four weeks, with 96.4% also attending a professional conference. The average satisfaction score was 9.5 ± 0.8 out of 10. Importantly, 100% of respondents learned new procedures, 89.3% reported a shift in medical practice perception, and 60.7% implemented new procedures upon returning to Ukraine. Despite progress, barriers included lack of material resources (71.4%), insufficient human resources (35.7%), and lack of support from colleagues (32.1%) and leadership (17.9%). Encouraged to share knowledge, 82.1% provided informal training to colleagues, 60.7% presented at their institutions and national conferences, 39.3% integrated materials into lectures, and 10.7% engaged in all activities. Additionally, 82.1% maintained mentorship contact with their training institutions. Key institutional advancements included transitions from Co-60 radiotherapy to linear accelerators, adoption of hypofractionation, launch of SBRT programs, and improved radiotherapy plan review procedures. Participants reported increased confidence in clinical decision-making and emphasized the value of multidisciplinary team approaches observed abroad.Conclusion: International observerships played a crucial role in enhancing the skills and knowledge of Ukrainian cancer care professionals during the war. Despite ongoing conflict, significant improvements were made in clinical practice, medical education, and procedure implementation. This initiative demonstrated the resilience of Ukraine’s medical community, highlighting the importance of continued professional development in crises. The success of these observerships supports replication in other LMICs/UMICs.