Impact of COVID-19 on workload burden of a complex radiotherapy facility

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: COVID-19 constitutes a worldwide threat, prompting Italian Government to implement specific measures on March 8, 2020, to protect patients and health workers from disease transmission. The impact of preventive measures on daily activity of a radiotherapy facility may hamper the ability to fulfill normal workload burden. Thus, we assessed the number of delivered treatments in a specific observation period after the adoption of preventive measures (since March 11 to April 24, 2020) and compared it with the corresponding period of the year 2019. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Overall number of delivered fractions was related to actual time of platform daily activity and reported as a ratio between number of delivered fractions and activity hours (Fr/Hrs). Fr/Hrs were calculated and compared for two different periods of time, March 11–April 24, 2019 (Fr/Hrs1), and March 11–April 24, 2020 (Fr/Hrs2). RESULTS: Fr/Hrs1 and Fr/Hrs2 were 2.66 and 2.54 for year 2019 and 2020, respectively, for a Fr/Hrs(ratio) of 1.07 (95% CI 1.03–1.12, p = 0.0005). Fr/Hrs1 was significantly higher than Fr/Hrs2 for Sli(R) and Precise(R), with Fr/Hrs(ratio) of 1.92 (95% CI 1.66–2.23, p < 0.0001) and 1.11 (95% CI 1.03–1.2, p = 0.003), respectively. No significant difference was reported for Synergy(R) and Cyberknife(R) with Fr/Hrs(ratio) of 0.99 (95% CI 0.91–1.08, p = 0.8) and 0.9 (95% CI 0.77–1.06, p = 0.2), respectively. Fr/Hrs1 was significantly lower than Fr/Hrs2 for Tomotherapy(R), with Fr/Hrs(ratio) of 0.88 (95% CI 0.8–0.96, p = 0.007). CONCLUSION: Preventive measures did not influence workload burden performed. Automation in treatment delivery seems to compensate effectively for health workers number reduction.