Article provides excellent review of chemotherapy safety.

摘要

I am an associate degree RN working full-time on an inpatient medical/oncology unit. What a great article your journal published in the August 2009 issue. "Safe Handling of Hazardous Drugs: Are You Protected?" (Nixon & Schulmeister, 2009) was an excellent review of the gold standards for safe chemotherapy handling. Initially, chemotherapy was given in an acute-care setting. Currently, the outpatient setting is the typical venue to deliver antineoplastic agents. Still, some chemotherapy is given as an inpatient procedure, but infrequency is the issue. This article did an excellent job denning what drugs are considered hazardous, guidelines for handling said drugs, and risks surrounding exposure to cytotoxic agents; it concluded with ideas for staff training and education.