New university course in cancerology has been launched

Cancer treatments are increasingly being administered orally and in the home, and so the role played by healthcare professionals treating cancer patients outside the hospital environment is growing, too.

Advances in treatment mean that cancer is increasingly comparable to a chronic disease. Being considered a chronic disease influences the way treatment is planned, and makes it necessary to adopt a comprehensive approach that takes patients’ well-being into account.  This is especially important when the care is delivered to outpatients (at home, in private clinics, outpatients departments, etc.) in a multi-disciplinary network of professionals (GPs, specialists, pharmacists, nursing staff, social workers, carers, patients, and even their families).

A new course at the ULB, and a new prospectus for oncology

To accommodate the changing ways that cancer patients are treated, ULB-HeLSci, the health & life sciences training centre at the ULB, is launching a new “Certificat d’Université en Soins Intégrés en Oncologie ambUlatoire (SIOU)”. The course is intended for healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and physiotherapists.

“ULB-HeLSci – Pôle Santé” is also offering attendees the chance to receive a grant for sitting the course.

The course, delivered on the “Pôle Santé (ULB – Campus Erasme), has the following aims:

• The acquisition of cross-disciplinary expertise in oncology
• Training in patient empowerment
• Developing versatility and communication skills
• Developing a collaborative career path

Before they begin the 14 days of classroom-based learning, attendees first sit an innovative digital learning course, OncoStep, designed to ensure that all attendees, regardless of their background, have the scientific and oncology knowledge required to complete the course.

Practical details

• Learn more about the course
• Contacts:
  • ULB-HeLsci
  • Send us an email
  • Tel: +32 (0)2 555 8517

This training could be set up thanks to the joint support of Europe and the Brussels Capital Region, through the European Regional Development Fund. The ERDF operational programme for the Brussels Capital Region supports, among others, initiatives in the field of healthcare research and innovation. In this frame, nearly 1.8 million euros were invested in the ONCO-TRA.BRU project, of which this training is a component. The Lifetech cluster is also supported by the ERDF, for the sum of 3.2 million euros, with the objective of developing a “quadruple helix” cluster model, inserting the social dimension (patients and caretakers) into the existing partnership between companies, universities and the public sector.

About the ERDF:
The ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) is a European regional policy tool to create new opportunities for European citizens and to reduce the gap in living standards between regions. From 2007 until 2013, the ERDF has therefore invested 116 522 938.16 euros in 32 projects in the Brussels Capital Region, focussing on day-care facilities for young children, return to work programmes, training and sustainable development. The current programming (2014-2017) counts 46 projects, dealing with access to employment, research, sustainable development, innovation, etc. The sum invested by Europe and by the Brussels Capital Region amounts to 200 million euros.