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Taylor Regional Hospital Cancer Program Re-Certified by the Commission
on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons
The Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons
(ACoS) has granted Three-Year Approval with Commendation to the Cancer Program
at the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at Taylor Regional Hospital.
A facility receives a Three-Year Approval with Commendation following
the on-site evaluation by a physician surveyor during which the facility
demonstrates a Commendation level of compliance with one or more standards that
represent the full scope of the cancer program (cancer committee leadership,
cancer data management, clinical services, research, community outreach, and
quality improvement). In addition, a
facility receives a compliance rating for all other standards.
Established in 1922 by the American College of Surgeons, the CoC is a
consortium of professional organizations dedicated to improving survival rates
and quality of life for cancer patients through standard-setting, prevention,
research, education, and the monitoring of comprehensive, quality care. Its membership includes Fellows of the
American College of Surgeons and 42 national organizations that reflect the full
spectrum of cancer care.
The core functions of the CoC include setting standards for quality,
multidisciplinary cancer patient care; surveying facilities to evaluate
compliance with the 36 CoC standards; collecting standardized and quality data
from approved facilities; and using the data to develop effective educational
interventions to improve cancer care outcomes at the national, state, and local
level.
The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that more than 1.4 million
cases of cancer will be diagnosed in 2008. There are currently more than 1,400 CoC-approved cancer programs in the
US and Puerto Rico, representing close to 25 percent of all hospitals. This 25 percent of hospitals diagnose and/or
treat 80 percent of newly diagnosed cancer patients each year. In addition, a national network of more than
1,600 volunteer Cancer Liaison Physicians provides leadership and support for
the CoC
Approvals Program and other CoC activities at these local facilities.
The Approvals Program, a component of the CoC, sets quality-of-care
standards for cancer programs and reviews the programs to ensure they conform
to those standards. Approval by the CoC
is given only to those facilities that have voluntarily committed to providing
the highest level of quality cancer care and that undergo a rigorous evaluation
process and review of their performance. To maintain approval, facilities with CoC-approved cancer programs must
undergo an on-site review every three years.
Receiving care at a Commission on Cancer approved cancer program
ensures that a patient will have access to:
·
Comprehensive care
offering a range of state-of-the-art services and equipment.
·
A multispecialty, team
approach to coordinate the best treatment options available.
·
Information about ongoing
clinical trials and new treatment options.
·
Access to cancer-related
information, education and support.
·
A cancer registry that
collects data on type and stage of cancers and treatment results and offers
lifelong patient follow-up.
·
Ongoing monitoring and
improvement of care.
And, most importantly,
·
Quality care close to
home.
Cancer patient data are reported by each CoC-approved cancer program to
the CoC’s National Cancer Data Base (NCDB), a joint CoC/American Cancer Society
program. The NCDB currently contains
patient demographics, tumor characteristics, and treatment and out-comes
information for more than 18 million cancer patients diagnosed and treated at
hospital cancer programs in the US between 1985 and 2004. These data account for approximately two-thirds
of newly diagnosed cancer cases in the US each year.
NCDB data is regularly used to monitor and improve the quality of
patient care delivered in CoC-approved cancer programs. The CoC requires programs to implement
quality improvement initiatives that promote the delivery of quality,
multidisciplinary cancer care and lead to ongoing educational interventions
with local providers in the CoC-approved cancer programs.
Through an exclusive partnership with the American Cancer Society, the
CoC provides the public with information on the resources, services, and cancer
treatment experience for each CoC-approved cancer program. This information is shared with the public
on the American Cancer Society’s Website at www.cancer.org and through the American Cancer Society’s National Cancer Information Center at
1-800-ACS-2345.
The James Graham Brown Cancer Center at Taylor Regional Hospital, located at 125 Greenbriar Drive, opened in April 2005. If you would like more information about the Cancer Center, please call (270) 789-9999.