During your stay at the Eugène Marquis Centre, you will be taken care of by a qualified team who will make sure that you are comfortable, safe and receiving the best possible treatment. The information about your care provided below will help you to prepare for your arrival.
Once referred by your oncologist, you will start to receive care as an outpatient at the Eugène Marquis Centre.
During your consultation, your oncologist will give you:
A Personalised Care Plan (which describes how your treatment is going to be carried out)
Prescriptions for:
To help us deliver your care as smoothly as possible, we recommend bringing all your documents with you every time you are admitted to hospital and to all consultations with your general practitioner.
If you have any questions or comments, please write them down so that you do not forget them and so that you can discuss them more easily during your appointments at the Eugène Marquis Centre.
Before receiving chemotherapy, a blood sample will need to be taken, either at home by a nurse or at the laboratory. Please tell the nurse the name and telephone number of your laboratory.
The test must be carried out early in the morning so that the results can be faxed to the Eugène Marquis Centre within 15 hours.
A nurse will check the results of your blood test (white blood cells and platelets). If everything appears normal, you will not hear from us.
If your blood test highlights any problems (low white blood cell and platelet levels), the nurse will call you to tell you that:
Or
The day before your treatment, please make sure that you are easily contactable in the afternoon in case the nurse calls.
If it is absolutely necessary for you to change the date or time of your appointment, you can call the programming nurse (+31) 02992 52994 who will be able to propose a new appointment time.
Take all the medicines that your doctor has instructed you to take before chemotherapy (premedication). You should also bring the prescriptions and/or medicines so that the nurse can check what premedication you are on. If anything is missing, it can be administered when your drip is inserted.
If you have an implantable port, place an anaesthetic patch on it before leaving home. (It needs to be applied at least one hour before treatment).
You may need to stay at the Eugène Marquis Centre for anything between a couple of hours to a full day, depending on how long your treatment takes, whether you need to be monitored and how long it takes to prepare you for chemotherapy.
At your first chemotherapy session, your medical team will explain to you what your care involves as an outpatient.
Please do not hesitate to talk to your doctor or nurse about any negative side effects you may be experiencing, as this will help them to adapt your care to your needs and to direct you towards support services to help you cope.
Did you know? At the Eugène Marquis Centre, all treatments are prepared on site at the pharmacy. This allows your team to adapt your treatment to your weight and size. This is also why, depending on the type of treatment you are going to receive, you may have to wait longer for it.
You will be given advice about self-care and about monitoring any negative side effects that occur between sessions.Please do not hesitate to contact the Centre if required.
You may be using, or wish to use, complementary medicines. Any decisions you make to improve your well-being will be respected.
For your safety, however, some basic principles need to be followed:
In addition to the outpatient treatment that you receive at the hospital, the support care team is at hand to help you if required.
In addition to your medical consultation, you are also entitled to a paramedical support consultation before starting treatment.This is an opportunity for you to obtain additional information about your care, ask questions and assess your support care needs: See the Support Care page
Outpatient surgery involves short-term hospitalisation. This includes the period before the surgery, transfer to the operating theatre and post-surgery monitoring.
If your anaesthetist and surgeon agree, you can return home the same evening, provided that you agree to follow the discharge guidance.
The day before your operation, a nurse will call you to tell you what you need to do.
Preparing your skin before surgery is important in order to prevent infections in the area of the surgery. This includes two important elements:
Showering is an important part of your care and must be carried out thoroughly. Showering helps remove a large proportion of squames (dead skin flakes) on the surface of the skin and will reduce the risk of infection.
The morning of your operation, you should take another shower at home in the same way as the night before. You do not need to wash your hair again. Dress in clean clothes and do not use any cosmetic products (creams, deodorants, perfume, make-up, etc.). Remember to brush your teeth, even if you are fasting. If you are admitted to hospital the day before your operation, you will take a second shower in the department.
Three different processes may be used during operations:
Your surgeon and anaesthetist will discuss the options with you in order to choose the right one.
If you have recently undergone surgery, it is important that you follow certain guidance.Download Post-Surgery Guidance.If you need to contact us after you have returned home, you can call the Centre on:
If you have any problems during your stay, speak to your attending doctor or to the department manager, who will try to resolve the problem as soon as possible.
If you are not satisfied with the solution provided, you can contact the Service Users Committee (CDU) [Commission des Usagers], which, in line with the Act of 4 March 2002, was established by the Eugène Marquis Centre to provide patients with assistance, guidance and information about their rights.
Before leaving the Centre, your care team will provide you with personalised advice and instructions.You must not spend the first night after your operation alone at home. The day after your operation, the team will call you to check up on you.
If you need to contact us after you have returned home, you can call the Centre’s surgery department on (+31) 02992 53022.
You will have a post-surgery consultation with your surgeon 15 to 21 days after your operation. At that appointment, your surgeon will discuss with you your results and the next steps in your care. An appointment letter will be sent to your home or given to you when you are discharged.
Possible complications in the days following surgery:
A build-up of lymph (yellowish clear liquid) around the surgical site. This is a physiological response. If the build-up becomes too large or irritating, it may need to be drained. Draining is not painful and can be carried out in the department.
A haematoma may appear around the surgical site. If it is large or irritating, you should contact the surgery department.
You may develop a fever, or the surgical site may become hot and red. You should contact the surgery department or your general practitioner.
You can ask the surgery department for advice about healing, if required.