UNC Hospitals’ cancer program, whose flagship location is the N.C. Cancer Hospital, has earned national accreditation from the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons, with commendation in three areas: clinical research accrual, reporting of outcomes and oncology nursing care.
The Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons has granted three-year accreditation with commendation to the cancer program at UNC Hospitals.
To earn voluntary CoC accreditation, a cancer program must meet or exceed 34 quality care standards, be evaluated every three years through a survey process, and maintain levels of excellence in the delivery of comprehensive patient-centered care.
Three-Year Accreditation with Commendation is only awarded to a facility that exceeds standard requirements at the time of its triennial survey.
“I am extremely pleased to announce that in addition to receiving full accreditation status, UNC Cancer Care also received commendation in three areas: clinical research accrual, reporting of outcomes, and oncology nursing care,” said Meghan McCann, MSN, RN, director of cancer services at UNC Hospitals. “This accreditation provides value through improved patient outcomes across all domains of care: access and service, satisfaction and well-being, quality of care and cancer outcomes. This accomplishment is possible through the efforts of many.”
Because it is a CoC-accredited cancer center, UNC Cancer Care takes a multidisciplinary approach to treating cancer as a complex group of diseases that requires consultation among surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists, diagnostic radiologists, pathologists, and other cancer specialists. This multidisciplinary partnership results in improved patient care.
When patients receive care at a CoC facility, they also have access to information on clinical trials and new treatments, genetic counseling, and patient centered services including psycho-social support, a patient navigation process, and a survivorship care plan that documents the care each patient receives and seeks to improve cancer survivors’ quality of life.
Like all CoC-accredited facilities, the N.C. Cancer Hospital maintains a cancer registry and contributes data to the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB), a joint program of the CoC and American Cancer Society (ACS). This nationwide oncology outcomes database is the largest clinical disease registry in the world. CoC-accredited cancer centers have access to information derived from this type of data analysis, which is used to create national, regional, and state benchmark reports. These reports help CoC facilities with their quality improvement efforts.
There are currently more than 1,500 CoC-accredited cancer programs in the United States and Puerto Rico, representing 30 percent of all hospitals. CoC-accredited facilities diagnose and/or treat more than 70 percent of all newly diagnosed cancer patients.
The CoC provides the public with information on the resources, services, and cancer treatment experience for each CoC-accredited cancer program through the CoC Hospital Locator.
Established in 1922 by the American College of Surgeons, the Commission on Cancer (CoC) is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to improving patient outcomes 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.