ARLINGTON, Va., November 21, 2016 -- The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) announced today that Elekta has provided significant financial support to RO-ILS: Radiation Oncology Incident Learning System®, a national patient safety initiative launched in 2014 by ASTRO and the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM). RO-ILS® facilitates safer and higher quality care in radiation oncology by providing a mechanism for shared learning in a secure and non-punitive environment. It is the only medical specialty society-sponsored radiation oncology incident learning system within a federally listed Patient Safety Organization (PSO).

Elekta is a leading manufacturer of software, tools and treatment planning systems for radiation therapy, radiosurgery and brachytherapy. Elekta has been a supporter of ASTRO since 2000 and was one of the Society's first corporate ambassadors.

RO-ILS® is an online portal for radiation oncology centers to record non-patient-specific data about safety incidents and near-misses related to radiation therapy that occur at their facilities. To date, a total of 224 radiation therapy facilities from 36 different states have submitted nearly 2,500 events to the PSO. Clarity PSO and the Radiation Oncology Healthcare Advisory Council (RO-HAC), a panel of experts in radiation oncology, work together to aggregate, analyze and interpret the data submitted into RO-ILS® and publish quarterly reports to educate the radiation oncology community about how to improve safety and patient care. There are no fees for centers to participate in RO-ILS®, an aspect of the program that the gift from Elekta will help preserve.
"The support from Elekta will help us keep this initiative free for participating radiation oncology centers, which preserves access to RO-ILS® and encourages more centers, both large and small, to join this nationwide safety effort," said David C. Beyer, MD, FASTRO, Chair of ASTRO's Board of Directors. "Additionally, this gift allows us to conduct more in-depth data analysis by increasing the number of members on the Radiation Oncology Healthcare Advisory Council (RO-HAC)."


ABOUT ASTRO
ASTRO is the premier radiation oncology society in the world, with more than 10,000 members who are physicians, nurses, biologist, physicists, radiation therapists, dosimetrists and other health care professionals that specialize in treating patients with radiation therapies. As the leading organization in radiation oncology, the Society is dedicated to improving patient care through professional education and training, support for clinical practice and health policy standards, advancement of science and research, and advocacy. ASTRO publishes three medical journals, International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics (www.redjournal.org), Practical Radiation Oncology (www.practicalradonc.org) and Advances in Radiation Oncology (www.advancesradonc.org); developed and maintains an extensive patient website, RT Answers (www.rtanswers.org); and created the Radiation Oncology Institute (www.roinstitute.org), a non profit foundation to support research and education efforts around the world that enhance and confirm the critical role of radiation therapy in improving cancer treatment. To learn more about ASTRO, visit www.astro.org.

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