Machine QA at the Cancer Centers of Southwest Oklahoma is now simpler, faster and more standardized with the AQUA departmental quality management system

西南俄克bob体育网赌拉荷马州（CCSO）的癌症中心在俄克拉荷马州劳顿，阿尔特斯和邓肯的三个地点有放射肿瘤机构设施，为俄克拉荷马州西南部的人们提供优质的癌症护理。然而，在四个位置分布的四个线性加速器，机器QA是物理团队的耗时任务。

“One of our satellite centers is 45 minutes away and the other is an hour away,” says medical physicist Stephen Oyewale, who is based in Lawton. “As a result, I was spending at least three and a half hours every week traveling alone. In addition to this, some of our QA tests, such as the MLC test and the cone beam CT test, were quite complicated, time-consuming and very subjective.

“Then a colleague at another facility introduced me to AQUA,” he continues. “I was able to see some of the tests being performed in her department and I saw the potential for making our machine QA easier and more objective. I was attracted to the automation and ease-of-use of AQUA. For some tests, once started, they run by themselves and you just come back when it’s finished to analyze the results. It looked simple enough that I could easily train someone else to perform these tests.”

“我被自动化和易用性吸引了Aqua。对于一些测试，一旦开始，他们自己跑了，你刚刚回到了分析结果时。“

aqu在2019年7月安装在CCSO。随着Aqua的预安装测试图书馆，他们的许多机器QA测试从一开始就很好。对于需要一些特定于站点的定制的额外测试，初始设置在仅一个晚上完成。

“It was very quick and easy to get started,” Oyewale comments. “The fact that the AQUA test library is customizable was important for me. I like that I can adjust or add tests because we are constantly looking at how we can improve our processes. This is one of the things that drew me to AQUA.”

Improved time management

Oyewale has been able to delegate many machine QA tasks to radiation therapists, after a basic introduction to AQUA, which has reduced his need for traveling between sites considerably.

“在Aqua的一些测试的自动化，如MLC测试，不仅可以节省时间，而且也意味着我可以将任务委派给其他同事，提高整体效率，”他解释道。“我们的工作日是上午8点至下午5点。但在此期间，Linacs并不总是使用。患者之间可能会休息。现在，由于Aqua的易用性和自动化，我可以要求辐射治疗师在此期间为我迅速运行QA测试。例如，MLC测试只需七分钟即可执行。以前，我不得不等到经过几个小时或周末进入以获得Linacs。因此，当Linacs自由时委派某些测试已经挽救了我很多时间并减少了几小时的工作。我不太需要去现场，因为我只需看看Aqua的结果。

“对于每天早上由治疗师进行的日常QA，他们开辟了Aqua，它告诉他们他们那天要做什么，”Oyewale继续。“我们的一些第三方QA设备直接与Aqua相关联，允许自动录制结果。治疗师需要输入一些其他测试的结果，但Aqua促使它们从直觉的仪表板上。如果有任何需要，它还提醒他们，因此他们很高兴和自信使用它。

“总的来说，我每周至少节省六个小时，而不仅仅是由于旅行时间减少，而且由于QA流程和管理与Aqua更有效，”他评论。“我已经能够在其他任务中花费和更多的迫切问题。例如，我们今年开始了立体定向计划，所以我很欣赏有更多的时间来关注这一点。“

“总的来说，我每周至少节省六个小时，而不仅仅是由于旅行时间减少，而且由于更有效的QA流程和管理与Aqua。”

Centralization of complete machine QA data

aqusimplifies and streamlines the management of QA processes within the department. Previously, machine QA test results were recorded in folders located close to the equipment but now all the test details and results are recorded in AQUA. Eliminating the need for paper and folders, AQUA provides centralized QA data, which can be monitored and accessed easily from any computer in the department, and at any of the three sites.

“我想要更多电子邮件，在哪里可以从部门的任何地方检查事，”Oyewale说。“现在一切都在Aqua中录制，如果没有执行某些东西，或者如果需要任何东西，我可以轻松跟踪。事实上，Aqua通知将提醒我任何问题。报告和审核，我不必去文件夹。我有来自每个网站的一切都在水色中手。

“Sometimes the State Department visits us without notice to audit our QA processes,” he adds. “Previously, I had to scramble around for individual folders to show them our data. Now I can just open AQUA on a computer and have everything right there in one place. That has been impressive and saves a lot of time. The reports available in AQUA are everything we need, and they are customizable as well, which I love.”

“The reports available in AQUA are everything we need, and they are customizable as well, which I love.”

高质量的测试

“The library of tests in AQUA is a helpful starting point, including most of the tests we require according to TG142 guidelines,” Oyewale comments. “The quality of some tests is better than I experienced before. For example, the MLC test I used previously called for some visual observation, which was very subjective. The MLC test in AQUA is more objective and standardized, where the results do not depend on whoever is performing the test. Similarly, the monthly cone beam CT test is automated in AQUA, making it easier, faster and more objective.”

“Aqua简化了我们的机器QA，并为我们的部门带来了改进的时间管理，”他结束。“它已经释放了这么多的时间，我不想回到以前的方式。”

点击这里to learn more about AQUA.