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The Ontario Radiation Therapy Advanced Practice (ORTAP) group was formed in 2003 by a group of Radiation Therapy practitioners, including managers and educators. Following an educational symposium in September 2003, which highlighted possible directions for advanced practice in the province, ORTAP began acting as an advocate to move the advanced practice initiative forward
Video: CSRT: An Innovative Model of Care
In early 2004, after being adopted by Cancer Care Ontario (CCO), ORTAP submitted a funding proposal to the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care (MOHLTC) for a pilot project to "field test" advanced roles in Ontario. This project was known as the APRT Development Project and was endorsed by several external stakeholder representatives (Canadian Association of Medical Radiation Technologists (CAMRT), College of Medical Radiation Technologists of Ontario (CMRTO) and the Ontario Association of Medical Radiation Technologists (OAMRT)).
In late 2006, the APRT Demonstration Project was completed, and the final report submitted to the MOHLTC. In March 2007, the APRT project team was awarded additional funding to continue their work and the Clinical Specialist Radiation Therapist (CSRT) Demonstration Project was born. This phase saw the piloting of 10 CSRT positions (through Phase I and II of the Demonstration Project) and included the following pilot positions:
- Patient assessment and Symptom Management CSRT (Breast)
- Palliative CSRT (4 different positions at 4 Ontario sites)
- Skin Cancer CSRT
- Head and Neck Cancer CSRT
- Target Visualization and Delineation CSRT (H&N)
- Tomotherapy/Adaptive CSRT (H&N)
For additional descriptions of the CSRT role click here
In 2010, based on the overwhelmingly positive results of the CSRT Demonstration Project, CCO recommended a plan to formalize the CSRT position and implement it consistently across the province. In turn, in March 2011, the MOHLTC provided funding for a three-year period to facilitate the permanent integration of the CSRT role into the cancer care team and showcase this innovative model of care. The CSRT Sustainability Project was funded from April 2010 to March 2013 and paved the way for the next CSRT Project phase – the CSRT Integration Project.
The CSRT Integration Project started in April 2013 and focuses on the development of Palliative Radiation Therapy CSRTs, establishment of a national certification process, investigations and policy work related to new models of care in this health domain, and continued support of project data collection and knowledge translation activities.
This website contains information about our past and ongoing work as well as future opportunities and announcements. We will post regular updates to let you know what we are working on. Please email us for more information. Nicole Harnett, Project Lead, CSRT Projects ( Nicole.Harnett@rmp.uhn.on.ca )
or Michelle Ang, Project Coordinator, Radiation Treatment Program ( Michelle.Ang@cancercare.on.ca )
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