Quality Initiatives in Cancer Care at the 54th Annual 2018 American Society of Clinical Oncology

I recently attended the ASCO 2018 Annual Meeting on June 1st at the McCormick Place in Chicago where informative educational and scientific sessions highlighted the latest in cancer care treatments. This year attendees connected and shared with peers the latest in cancer treatment, care, and policy that impact the field of oncology and hematology. 

Among the many subjects discussed at ASCO was the continually evolving standards and quality metrics that ensure high-quality cancer programs deliver the highest quality of care in the value-based reimbursement landscape.  In the May 10, 2018 issue of the ASCO Post, Dr. Lawrence Shulman discussed the role of ASCO’s deep relationship with the Commission on Cancer (CoC), is a consortium established under the stewardship of the American College of Surgeons to ensure quality, multidisciplinary and comprehensive cancer care that improves survival and quality of life for cancer patients in health care settings. ASCO established the quality focus on quality and care delivery and the impact on oncology as a practice in a broad way.¹ 

ASCO developed the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI) to establish a pathway to participation and certification for accreditation for oncology practices and hospitals.  QOPI was designed to reflect the quality approach that CoC defined with the intent to continually evolve the field of cancer care through the definition and adoption of standards and quality metrics.  The QOPI, with an intent to ensure all patients have the necessary support in their care and that care providers willingly participate in programs to keep the bar of quality high for patient and their families.

Stay tuned for more insights and observations from the ASCO front.

Sources:

1. https://www.ascopost.com/issues/may-10-2018/evolving-standards-and-quality-metrics-in-cancer-programs/