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The more we all know about cancer, the better we can work together

David explains why his role as a cancer education specialist is so valuable?

Why do you think that ‘sharing knowledge’ is important?

I am passionate about empowering people through education and believe that fighting cancer starts with learning about cancer, and that insight and understanding are fundamental for people working in a cancer related field. The more people that know about this disease, the more we can share this knowledge and educate others. It is going to be difficult to ‘treat’ our way out of what is a cancer epidemic, but we might be able to highlight the risk factors associated with cancer and reduce the burden by reducing the numbers coming through with cancer. I believe it is the duty of every healthcare professional working in the cancer field to be able to talk about it intelligently with other professionals and patients alike.

Access to high quality cancer training and education provides its challenges and I recognise the need to improve the delivery of training to oncology professionals including nurses, researchers, therapists and others who work in this environment.

What do you mean by “With knowledge comes confidence”?

When you work in this field you are expected to know about cancer as a disease (and rightly so!). With knowledge comes confidence, with confidence you engender trust, with trust you can deliver better quality to your patients or clients. Patients are very well educated about their specific cancer. We need to match that knowledge and talk to them in a way that understands their specific situation.

Can you outline how people can gain this knowledge?

There are lots of resources out there for people who want to learn about cancer. Many of the books are too technical for a lot of people and require some background in biology or medicine. Many of the courses also assume prior knowledge.

I recognise the need to provide educational resources that start from the fundamentals. For example, you cannot describe what a ‘carcinoma’ is without first understanding cells and tissues within the body. It is difficult to talk about cancer as an abnormality, without first looking at what is normal within the cells of the body. Many people assume this level of knowledge, but my experience shows that a lot of people miss this step out. Cancer, its biology and subsequent terminology are complicated. To allow someone to understand it the learning needs to be layered, building on previous layers of knowledge until ultimately, we can discuss complicated topics around cancer.

We can only do that if we have the resources and access to good quality cancer education and I provide cancer training and educational resources developed specifically for individuals and teams working within cancer related environments. Learning experiences that bear levels of prior experience and knowledge into account. Resources that take into account cost, location and time, which is why I have designed face-to-face courses as well as remote webinar learning through live, internet lectures. My aim is to allow access to good quality cancer training available to all within the cancer team.

Can you tell us about the training you do here at The Christie and around the UK?

My Introduction to Cancer course encompasses an overall understanding of cancer as a disease. You will learn how it relates to the cells and tissues found in the normal body, quickly progressing on to learning about cancer as a disease. The content will be relevant, clear, sometimes thought-provoking and thorough. The information is brought across in a way you will understand. The atmosphere is relaxed and safe for questions to be asked, and above all, you will have some fun.

The Christie is a world-renowned centre for cancer care and treatment. Everyone who works in any cancer centre should have a fundamental understanding of the disease. All patients who encounter staff at the centre should have the confidence that they are receiving the best possible care. Knowledge of the disease increases that confidence in patients and others alike.

If you would like further information about the ‘Introduction to Cancer’ course please feel free to email us at the-christie.educationcentre@nhs.net.

I would like to take this opportunity to provide feedback on a recent ‘Cancer Explained’ course I conducted at The Christie Hospital in Manchester.

The participants expressed high satisfaction with the course, with 100% finding the content engaging and recommending it to others. David demonstrated exceptional engagement and thoroughly explained the material. The session was appropriately tailored to meet the attendees’ needs, showcasing David’s extensive knowledge and engaging presentation style.

The content was well-articulated, and while the online test presented a sufficient challenge, it served as a valuable refresher of concepts learned at the degree level, alongside the introduction of new topics such as staging, grading, and differentiation. The information provided is highly relevant and beneficial to my professional role.

The course was challenging in that it covered advanced topics not commonly known, yet David effectively simplified complex concepts through the use of diagrams, drawings, and printed materials.

Overall, it was a highly enjoyable experience. If you believe this course would be advantageous for your team, please do not hesitate to reach out, and we can initiate the process.

Additionally, the webinars will continue as scheduled, and I encourage you to book a spot for the upcoming sessions. If your organisation holds a subscription with me, you are welcome to join at no cost. You can view the schedule here.

Please feel free to contact me if you would like to learn more about my work and how it can enhance your professional development and that of your colleagues.

’til next time,

David

Join me for this FREE webinar on 1st August at 2pm to celebrate the launch of my new book ‘Oncology: An introduction for nurses and healthcare professionals’ Click the link below to register.

Cancer Demystified – What is Cancer?

Tuesday 1st August

2pm-3pm

South West Admin Oncology Training ‘An Introduction to Cancer’

A summary of feedback – Exeter 21^st June 2023

 

Colleagues attended from the following Trusts:

Somerset NHS FT: 4

Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS FT: 21

Torbay & South Devon NHS FT: 1

University Hospitals Plymouth: 2

 

 

 

 

Self rated cancer knowledge at the start of the day

 

 

 

 

 

Self rated cancer knowledge at the end of the day

 

 

 

Motivation to attend the day:

• New to my role in Cancer Services, so feel it’s important to learn more about cancer.
• To learn about how cancer progresses/moves.
• Encouragement from Cancer Manager to attend, to increase knowledge of my role.

 

What three things will you take away from the training event?

• A better understanding of staging and grading
• Confidence to understand oncology discussions taking place around me at work
• Knowledge of the webinars in order to further my knowledge of specific cancer sites

 

Additional comments about the day

• It was an amazing day. Nothing could have been better.
• Really engaging and interesting training. Can’t fault it.
• I found the course extremely interesting and helpful. It was a day well spent.

 

	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
I found the training event a good use of my time	0	0	2	26
I am confident that the training event today will better enable me to deliver our cancer services	0	2	6	20
The training event was well organised and facilitated	0	0	2	26

Would you recommend this event to a colleague?

100% said they would!

“I just would like to say how utterly fantastic the training was this week at Exeter – everyone I have spoken with that attended found it truly fascinating and learnt a lot (including myself – such a worthwhile training course).  David is a fantastic trainer and I highly recommend the course.”

Administrator, Somerset NHS Trust

South West Admin Oncology Training ‘An Introduction to Cancer’

A summary of feedback – Bristol 4^th October 2022

 

What part of the training event did you find the most useful?

• Understanding the science behind Cancer and the specific terminology we use daily and now I actually know what it means!
• The training event was very informative and very well organised. Finally know what metastases means!

What three things will you take away from the training event?

• The grading and staging of cancer.
• Elephants don’t get cancer!
• More confidence in medical discussions with colleagues and in supporting patients with their clinic letters.

The training event would have been better if,,,

• Directions to the venue had been clearer.
• A longer day for more in depth/site specific information.

 

Any other comments

• Really beneficial day with brilliantly delivered training by a very clever facilitator.
• David was very interesting and informative and breaks everything down to a level that is easily understandable for non-clinical staff. I love the webinars so to do a face to face day was amazing!
• David uses simple language and scenarios to help the audience understand. Especially liked the reinforcement exercise.

 

	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
The training event today has increased my knowledge of cancer, treatment options & disease progression	0	0	3	18
I found the training event a good use of my time	0	0	4	17
I am confident that the training event today will better enable me to deliver our cancer objectives	0	1	5	15
The training event was well organised and facilitated	0	0	2	19

 

 

South West Admin Oncology Training ‘An Introduction to Cancer’

A summary of feedback – Exeter RILD 13^th September 2022

 

What part of the training event did you find the most useful?

• The use of visual aids and interaction from the speaker really helped with understanding and absorbing the information.
• The teaching was well delivered and relevant, with clear explanations around certain terminology and abbreviations, giving me a better understanding to help me progress within my administrative role.

What three things will you take away from the training event?

• What Cancer is and how it develops and spreads
• The grading and staging of cancer
• The confidence to be able to support my team with decisions regarding the Cancer patients care

The training event would have been better if,,,

• There had been more opportunity for smaller group work/discussion.
• More images of cells to see the difference in them, including radiological images.
• More site-specific information.

 

Any other comments

• I will leave feeling more knowledgeable and prepared to do my job.
• David’s lecturing style is fantastic! As non-clinical staff, being able to understand terminology is so empowering.
• Well worth my time and travel.
• Would recommend this to anyone starting out a career in Cancer Services.
• The organisation has been most professional. I will be urging my colleagues to attend future training sessions.

	Strongly disagree	Disagree	Agree	Strongly agree
The training event today has increased my knowledge of cancer, treatment options & disease progression	0	0	3	30
I found the training event a good use of my time	0	0	7	26
I am confident that the training event today will better enable me to deliver our cancer objectives	1	3	10	19
The training event was well organised and facilitated	0	0	11	22

 

 

It might seem a minor thing to many, but for the cancer patients it is really important that in every aspect of their care they are confident in the people and systems that support them. Underpinning this confidence is your cancer knowledge. Knowledge about cancer and it effects, knowledge of the terminology associated with cancer. Knowledge about the cancer treatments and their effects. Better cancer knowledge breeds confidence, and confidence breeds a feeling of safeness…if that is even a word, but it describes what I mean. So, what better way to increase your cancer knowledge and confidence than by learning from someone who has been in this field for nigh on 40 years! But don’t just take my word for it…

“I started a job in Oncology Clinical Research in May this year. As part of this role I am learning as much as can about oncology. I have registered and watched many David O’Halloran courses (not live).
The study sessions have provided me with so much more knowledge of Oncology than I have ever had in 24 years of nursing.”

Oncology Nurse, Musgrove Hospital.

Find the new schedule here

“I am a Clinical Psychologist and have worked in physical health for many years but it has been quite some time since I last worked in the cancer field. I have retuned to the specialty in the last 6 months and your Webinars came highly recommended by Clinical Psychology colleagues. I have attended several of your webinars so far and I cannot recommend them enough. Obviously as a non-medic I do not need to know all of the medical detail of diagnoses etc but a good level of understanding is required. Your webinars provide an excellent grounding in the essentials and are so accessible due to your presentation style and the approachable manner in which you teach. I am sure there are many people from a broad range of professional backgrounds who will benefit as I have from your webinars. I very much like the ‘bitesize’ element of the webinars too as this means I can complete them at a sensible pace, building on my knowledge as I go and as I gain more clinical experience in the work. I wanted to let you know how useful these webinars have been and thank you for providing something that would otherwise have been a huge gap for me in my knowledge and understanding of many aspects of cancer diagnosis and treatments! Keep up the good work!”

Dr Katie Hatton, Clinical Psychologist

Introduction to Cancer 6-7th July 2021 – evaluations