Jeffrey Jones Discusses Nurses' Impact on Patient Compliance

Jeffrey Jones, MD, MPH, assistant professor of Internal Medicine and section head of the Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) research program at Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses how nurses can help patients comply with taking their oncology drugs.

Because the drugs have a threshold effect, patients can compromise their outcomes or accelerate the emergence of resistance if they discontinue or reduce their dose.

Nurses and nurse practitioners play an important role in educating and encouraging patients to remain compliant with their treatment, Jones says. They can also help patients manage adverse events, which is a common reason for discontinuing treatment.