Allied Health

Clinical Psychology
Clinical Psychologists assist patients with their adjustment to their health condition, treatment, and changed circumstances at different stages of their illness. Clinical Psychologists work with you to develop strategies to manage your psychological or emotional distress, and many other common conditions such as depression, anxiety, sleep disturbance, and tackling difficult treatment procedures. Similarly Clinical Psychologists also provide assistance to the family members to enhance their coping and adjustment in relation to the patient's condition and in their role as the carer to the patient.

Dietetics
Dietitians are professionals who apply the science of food and nutrition to promote health, prevent and treat disease to optimise the health of individuals, groups, communities and populations. They are part of the multidisciplinary team that help with cancer treatment and recovery. Dietitians work with patients, their families and the rest of the medical team to manage the patient’s diet during and after cancer treatment. Eating the right kinds of foods before, during and after cancer treatment can help the patient feel better and assist the recovery.

The side effect of some cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy, surgery and stem cell transplant, can make it hard for the patient to eat enough. Patients with head and neck, oesophagus, stomach, intestine, pancreas or liver cancer are in particular high risk of poor nutritional intake. Medical nutrition therapy is used to help cancer patients to maintain weight, energy level, and manage side effects during and after treatment.

Conduct nutrition assessment
Provide medical nutrition therapy to address malnutrition and nutrient deficiencies
Recommend strategies to manage side effects during and after treatment
Provide recommendations on diet modification, including suggestion of oral nutrition supplements or enteral nutrition support

Occupational Therapy
Occupational Therapists assess a person's ability to function at home, in life roles and their ability to adapt to lifestyle changes, which may occur as a result of cancer. Possible interventions that the Occupational Therapists can provide to you include:

Assessment of the way that the cancer, its treatment, and the side effects limit performance of daily activities.
Home modifications.
Equipment prescription.
Energy conservation.
Lymphoedema management.
Stress management

Lymphoedema
The lymphoedema service is an outpatient based service which provides assessment, treatment and management of lymphoedema which can present in any parts of the body commonly including the arms, legs, torso and head and neck area.

The role of the lymphoedema service is:

Early intervention clinic (available at Bankstown, Liverpool and Campbelltown Hospitals) - for those at risk of lymphoedema following cancer surgeries and/or cancer treatments. This provides early screening and intervention as required post operatively for those who have had lymph node surgery and are at risk of developing lymphoedema
Assessment clinic (Liverpool and Campbelltown Hospitals) - for those with new or chronic presentations of lymphoedema. This provides assessment, treatment and management for those who have lymphoedema. This includes:

Education on risk minimisation and prevention
Exercise prescription
Compression bandaging
Manual lymphatic drainage
Negative pressure therapy – LymphaTouch
Low Level Laser therapy
Scar management
Prescription of self-management techniques

All patients following sentinel node biopsy and lymph node dissection in head and neck, axilla and groin regions, should be referred to a lymphoedema therapist for review.

Physiotherapy
Physiotherapists may work with a person with cancer in a number of ways, both in the inpatient and outpatient setting. They conduct holistic assessments to identify the impact of cancer and its treatment on musculoskeletal, neurological or cardiorespiratory function. They also devise and implement targeted treatment programs to address any identified impairments, and provide education and advice on maintaining function and independence throughout the cancer journey, from pre-diagnosis through to survivorship and end of life care. They also assess and refer patients onto appropriate service providers for exercise.

For example women having mastectomy surgery for breast cancer often need information and treatment from a physiotherapist to maintain a full range of movement in the shoulder area. The physiotherapist who works on the oncology ward may provide you with chest physiotherapy and/or to improve your ability to sit stand and move about as independently as possible. This can include prescribing exercises or equipment such as walking sticks.

Social Work
After the diagnosis of cancer, patients or carers may have to adjust to changes in different aspects of their lives such as lifestyle, employment, finances and relationships. Social workers provide supportive counselling on an individual or family basis to help you adjust to the impact of cancer. This includes helpful ways to talk with your spouse or children about cancer.

One of the key roles of social workers is to link people to a range of assistance and services that may be available in the community. This may include seeing you in the hospital to arrange care at home upon your discharge if this is required. The social workers are also involved in coordinating some of the patient education and support groups in the Cancer Therapy Centre.

Speech Pathology
Speech Pathologists work with people who have difficulty with:

Swallowing – this may mean it is difficult to chew, to control food or drink in their mouths, to initiate a swallow, to move food or drink through their throat easily or feel like they choke when they swallow.
Communication – this may mean it is difficult for people to express themselves as clearly as they would like to or understand what is being said to them. This includes changes to how your voice sounds or how clear your speech is.

The Speech Pathology Cancer Therapy Services at Liverpool & Campbelltown Hospitals offer:

Assessment, diagnosis and treatment for problems with communication and swallowing problems
Instrumental assessment and management of swallowing problems using Fibreoptic Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES) & videofluroscopic swallow study (VFSS)
Education and counselling to family and carers to facilitate partnerships in care for individuals
Provides training and support to other members of the care team, the individual and caregivers
Work with people who have a tracheostomy – to support communication and promote safe swallowing
Work with people who are going to have or have had a laryngectomy – to optimise communication, swallowing and breathing
Liaise with external providers as needed

Communication and Swallowing problems can be due to a number of different things e.g:

Cancer affecting the head and neck (i.e mouth & throat)
Cancer affecting other parts of the body (e.g. lung, oesophagus, brain)
The side effects of the cancer treatment
Tracheostomy tubes which help with breathing
Neurological conditions such as stroke or dementia
Respiratory disorders which affect breathing
Age related changes

Referrals
Contact Liverpool Hospital Speech Pathologist on: 0477 714 641 or 02 8738 4774
Contact Campbelltown Hospital Speech Pathologist on: 0417 214 841 or 0436 638 606