4MS IN ONCOLOGY CARE: CREATING AN AGE-FRIENDLY HEALTH SYSTEM.
Significance & Background: Older adults with cancer often face complex care needs, including polypharmacy, mobility decline, cognitive changes, underscoring the importance of aligning care with personal values. The Age-Friendly Health System (MSHS) "4Ms" framework--what Matters, Medication, Mentatio...
| Published in: | Oncology Nursing Forum Vol. 53; no. 2; pp. 258 - 260 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , |
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Published: |
Oncology Nursing Society
Mar2026
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| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=194211555&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 194211555 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 0190535X 4F0 jtl: Oncology Nursing Forum issn: 0190535X maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Mar2026 vid: 53 iid: 2 pid: 12496 pub: Oncology Nursing Society place: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania artinfo: ui: 194211555 10.1188/26.ONF.e26535271 194211555 ppf: 258 ppct: 2 formats: fmt: @attributes: type: P tig: atl: 4MS IN ONCOLOGY CARE: CREATING AN AGE-FRIENDLY HEALTH SYSTEM. aug: au: Pouliot, Jennifer Jakubowski, Rita Bak, Boram Waters, Robert Mars, Torrence affil: MSN-Ed, RN, OCN, Mount Sinai Health System, New York, NY sug: ab: Significance & Background: Older adults with cancer often face complex care needs, including polypharmacy, mobility decline, cognitive changes, underscoring the importance of aligning care with personal values. The Age-Friendly Health System (MSHS) "4Ms" framework--what Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility--offers a structured approach to enhance oncology care. MSHS has implemented the 4Ms int its inpatient oncology units and Ambulatory BMT Survivorship Clinic to improve patient-centered outcomes. Purpose: This initiative aimed to integrate the 4Ms into oncology workflows across multiple care settings, improve documentation of age-friendly practices, and enhance outcomes such as mobility, care planning, and alignment of treatment with patient goals. Interventions: In inpatient oncology the 4Ms were embedded into bedside shift reports, with structured discussion of "what matters most," review of high-risk medications, mentation assessments, and daily mobility goals. Weekly audits reinforced adherence. Mobility metrics tracked the percentage of days patients were out of bed (OOB), and associations were made with length of stay (LOS) and fall rates. In the BMT unit, admissions for patients >65 included structured 4M assessments using Epic smart texts. These covered healthcare proxy documentation (what matters most), AGS Beers Criteria medication review, delirium screening, and the Timed Up & Go test. Outpatient BMT survivorship clinics extended monitoring of long-term functional, cognitive, and emotional needs. System wide, a quality improvement goal focused on increasing advanced care planning (ACP) documentation by 10% by the end of 2025. Results: Preliminary data demonstrated that days OOB were associated with reduced LOS, without an increase in fall rates across oncology units. Weekly audits improved 4M integration into bedside shift reports. In BMT admissions, consistent 4M documentation supported individualized care planning for older adults. Across the Cancer Center, ACP documentation increased, advancing patient-centered decision-making. A new Age-Friendly Dashboard now enables ongoing monitoring of interventions on key metrics. Discussion: Implementing age-friendly care using the 4Ms framework is both feasible and effective across diverse oncology settings. Structured workflows, EHR tools, and interdisciplinary collaboration enabled consistent adoption. Early outcomes indicate improvements in functional status, patient-centered planning, and safety. Sustained focus on the 4Ms can help transform care for older adults by aligning treatment with personal values minimizing nosocomial risks and supporting survivorship needs. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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