Scale Brachytherapy Patient Education Without Scaling Staff
While brachytherapy is one of the most effective and targeted treatments in radiation oncology, it is also one of the most difficult for patients to fully absorb.
Conversations around HDR and LDR brachytherapy, dosimetry, applicator placement, side effects, and image-guided treatment planning can feel overwhelming during already emotionally charged consultations.
For radiation oncology teams, these conversations are often repeated across consultations, treatment planning visits, procedures, and follow-up appointments.
And for patients? More often they not, they leave overwhelmed, return with new questions, or require additional education before treatment can proceed. In fact, published studies have documented significant anxiety and distress during brachytherapy treatment workflows, with nearly 40% of patients in one HDR brachytherapy study demonstrating clinically significant anxiety symptoms during treatment.
5thPort helps standardize and automate educational delivery before, during and after brachytherapy treatment – allowing care teams to reinforce understanding without repeatedly delivering the same information.
The Result? Improved Patient Preparedness That Supports:
- Increased case acceptance
- Reduction in no-shows
- Expanded clinical capacity
A Sample Brachytherapy Patient Education Workflow for Prostate Cancer
Diagnosis & Consultation
- SMS and email reminders prompting patients to review physician-recorded videos explaining HDR vs LDR brachytherapy and expected side effects
- Illustrated educational documents explaining dosimetry, applicator placement, radiation safety, and recovery expectations
- Teach-back quizzes measuring whether patients understand key treatment concepts before consultation
A look inside the 5thPort video workflow—showing how patient education content is delivered in a clear, guided, and easy-to-follow experience.
Treatment Planning
- Physician videos walking patients through CT simulation, image-guided treatment planning, fiducial markers, and SpaceOAR placement
- Digital informed consent forms with section-by-section review, eSignatures, and the ability for patients to flag questions for discussion
- Automated SMS and email reminders delivered before simulation and planning appointments
Pre-Procedure Preparation
- Personalized appointment reminders before anesthesia, seed implant, or HDR treatment sessions
- Illustrated preparation instructions covering fasting, medication holds, transportation, and post-procedure recovery
- Teach-back surveys assessing whether patients understand procedural expectations and radiation safety instructions
See how a 5thPort video workflow brings patient education to life – step by step, from content delivery to patient understanding.
A look inside the 5thPort video workflow – showing how patient education content is delivered in a clear, guided, and easy-to-follow experience.
Mid-Treatment Monitoring and Adherence
- Symptom monitoring surveys identifying patients who may require additional outreach or support
- Analytics measuring video completion, replay behavior, quiz performance, and educational engagement
- Automated educational reinforcement when patients demonstrate incomplete comprehension or workflow drop-off
Recovery and Survivorship
- Post-treatment videos explaining PSA monitoring, symptom recovery, and survivorship expectations
- Follow-up appointment reminders and recovery education delivered digitally after treatment completion
- Long-term access to informed consent documents, educational materials, and physician guidance patients can revisit anytime