The role of the Nursing care in Theranostic: a reflective qualitative review

Introduction: The development of novel radionuclide treatments, such as those with prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) as the target structure or Somatostatin-based receptors (SST), has had a substantial effect on the clinical routine of nuclear medicine therapy wards. Metastatic castration-resistant (mCRPC) prostate cancer and Neuroendocrine Tumour (NET) are two of the most prevalent tumours that may be treated using radionuclide-based therapies. The majority of these treatments are administered during the day or in short-stay wards in the European Union. The Nuclear Medicine and Theranostics departments have multiple challenges treating these patients since they are typically in the latter stages of their diseases. These patients require additional clinical care due to the use of nasogastric tubes, foley catheters, sedation and analgesic requirements, central access management, and personal care..A skilled Nurse is just as vital in staffing as a trained Theranostic physician, Radiochemist, Physicist, or Nuclear Medicine Technologist in order to manage any potential emergency. In addition, it becomes a prerequisite for meeting the local health policy and regulation criteria. This research is a reflection of a Nuclear Medicine Nurse and co-workers in the diagnostic capacity of a private hospital to analyse how adding specialised nursing care might improve the quality of patient care.

Methods: The methodology used was qualitative critical reflection of real-world practice. The purpose of this research was to describe the evolving role of nurses in the Nuclear Medicine and theranostics

Results: As more vulnerable people have become involved in Lutetium-based treatment, the need for more complex care has also become increasingly prevalent. Within the span of a year, it was determined that difficult healthcare issues confronted by nuclear medicine physcian could be addressed more readily with the support of specialised nursing care, which resulted in an improvement in the overall quality of care that was delivered. In addition, nursing involvement was beneficial for the Theranostic department because it allowed nurses to discuss with other members of the team the most recent nursing rules and national care recommendations addressing a wide range of clinical concerns in order to develop comprehensive standard operating procedures. This was an important step in the process of developing a comprehensive standard operating procedure (SOPs).

Conclusions: Following the recent clearance of theranostic medicines by the FDA, we may anticipate a rise in customer interest in this sector. As a consequence of this, there is a pressing need for the systematic advancement of nursing care in theranostics in order to successfully meet the forthcoming quantitative and qualitative obstacles. Not only is the participation of the nursing staff desirable, but it is also necessary in order to deliver high-quality holistic care.