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The Adult/Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplantation (BMT) unit at the American University of Beirut Medical Center
includes five beds for patients of all acuity levels who are receiving syngeneic, allogeneic, and autologous bone marrow transplantation.
The BMT unit supports the mission of AUBMC Nursing Services in striving to promote excellence in the care of oncology and
BMT patients through service, education, and research. BMT services are available 24 hours a day, and the unit is staffed
by a team of highly qualified medical and nursing experts. The unit, a caring and comfortable in-patient facility, is maintained
to facilitate the transport of patients to other departments, as needed, and to handle coordination of care. The multidisciplinary
conferences that are held involve the physician, nurse, dietitian, pharmacist, physical therapist, and psychiatry clinical
nurse specialist. BMT unit nurses are especially trained and experienced in caring for the special needs of bone marrow
transplant patients. They are highly qualified and expert in the various skills of oncology treatment, including:
- In-patient care of cancer patients through their entire disease process.
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- Administration of chemotherapy.
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- Administration of immunotherapy.
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- Administration of supportive therapies such as TPN and blood products, including packed cells, platelets, fresh frozen
plasma, and stem cells.
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- Education of patients and their significant others about the disease process, treatment modalities, possible side effects,
and management of those side effects as they occur.
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- Handling and providing care to vascular access devices, mainly central lines and Port-A-Cath.
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- Accessing Port-A-Cath.
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- Nursing care of patients undergoing bone marrow/peripheral blood stem cells transplantation for haematologic and solid
tumor malignancies, along with non-malignant haematologic disorders.
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Nursing care of patients undergoing bone marrow/peripheral blood stem cells transplantation for haematologic
and solid tumor malignancies, along with non-malignant haematologic disorders. The nurses, who are especially trained for
the BMT procedure, are involved in the patient’s preparation for the transplant and treatment. They work closely with
the transplant medical team and are responsible for planning the direct patient care to be provided.
A patient education
booklet is given to and discussed with the patient. A round on the BMT unit is offered to acquaint the patient with the closed
unit environment and the strict protective isolation measures taken before admission. In this regard, we also instruct the
patient and significant others on the restrictive measures to be taken after discharge. The discharge planning process is
initiated on the date of admission to the BMT unit. The instruction provided is related to infection control, diet modifications,
and medications, in line with a multidisciplinary care approach that involves the nurse, dietitian, pharmacist, and physician.
BMT unit nurses aim at helping those who undergo BMT to maximize their potential throughout the phase of hospitalization
and treatment. The special needs of patients post-BMT are acknowledged, and nursing interventions are planned based on those
assessed needs. They may include:
- Managing side effects of treatment.
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- Controlling symptoms of the disease.
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- Providing physical and psychosocial comfort and support as needed.
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- Providing patient and significant others with education on treatment and various aspects of the disease.
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BMT unit nursing staff comply with all educational requirements and hold specialty nursing certification
in adult oncology and BMT. They are, meanwhile, actively involved in hospital nursing committees and in the constant promotion
of performance improvement to ensure enhanced patient satisfaction.
AUBMC Nursing Services is committed to providing
its BMT nurses with the support and resources needed to meet the growing challenges of oncology nursing, especially in this
age of rapid technological advances in healthcare.
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