Program Information

Workflow and FMEA in a New Proton Therapy (PT) Facility

C Cheng*, B Wessels , H Hamilton , T Difranco , D Mansur , University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Cleveland, OH

Presentations

SU-E-T-419 Sunday 3:00PM - 6:00PM Room: Exhibit Hall

Purpose:Workflow is an important component in the operational planning of a new proton facility. By integrating the concept of failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) and traditional QA requirements, a workflow for a proton therapy treatment course is set up. This workflow serves as the blue print for the planning of computer hardware/software requirements and network flow. A slight modification of the workflow generates a process map(PM) for FMEA and the planning of QA program in PT.

Methods:A flowchart is first developed outlining the sequence of processes involved in a PT treatment course. Each process consists of a number of sub-processes to encompass a broad scope of treatment and QA procedures. For each sub-process, the personnel involved, the equipment needed and the computer hardware/software as well as network requirements are defined by a team of clinical staff, administrators and IT personnel.

Results:Eleven intermediate processes with a total of 70 sub-processes involved in a PT treatment course are identified. The number of sub-processes varies, ranging from 2-12. The sub-processes within each process are used for the operational planning. For example, in the CT-Sim process, there are 12 sub-processes: three involve data entry/retrieval from a record-and-verify system, two controlled by the CT computer, two require department/hospital network, and the other five are setup procedures. IT then decides the number of computers needed and the software and network requirement. By removing the traditional QA procedures from the workflow, a PM is generated for FMEA analysis to design a QA program for PT.

Conclusion:Significant efforts are involved in the development of the workflow in a PT treatment course. Our hybrid model of combining FMEA and traditional QA program serves a duo purpose of efficient operational planning and designing of a QA program in PT.

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