The governing body or cancer committee determines
the sequence of contacts or governing body for follow-up.
The appropriate physician must give permission to
contact patients or relatives directly. The method
and system must be approved by proper authorities
and documented.
The medical staff at the request of the cancer committee
may grant blanket permission. This request is usually
channeled through the medical executive committee.
If the request is denied, blanket permission to contact
patients from
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individual physicians may be necessary. Letters granting permission
should be kept on file in the registry.
Blanket permission is most frequently granted when the procedure
is well described in the request. Sample letters or dialogue
to be used in contacts should be provided to the persons from
whom the permission is being requested. The medical staff
may wish to impose some restrictions. For instance, the registry
staff may be instructed not to mention the patient's diagnosis
unless the patient does so first. This restriction has often
been applied in the past and can help alleviate problems for
the registry staff.
The cancer committee should decide if letters are to be signed
by the registry staff or the cancer committee chairperson.
A policy should be defined regarding registry staff initiating
telephone calls to patients and contacts. Often, cancer registrars
are required to identify themselves by another title, rather
than using the term cancer registrar.
Occasionally, a patient will contact the registry in response
to a follow-up letter, requesting a referral to a new physician,
an appointment, or general information. A policy should be
established to manage such situations.
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