Anderson Cancer Center Remains Nationally Accredited
The Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons (ACoS) has granted an additional Three-Year Accreditation to Anderson Regional Cancer Center. The Center has remained accredited by the CoC since it opened in 2003.
To earn CoC accreditation, a cancer program must meet or exceed 34 CoC 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.
“By voluntarily submitting to a survey that closely examines our facility and procedures, we are showing our patients that we strive for the highest quality care possible,” stated John G. Anderson, President and CEO, Anderson Regional Health System.
As a CoC-accredited cancer center, Anderson Regional Cancer Center 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.
“Commission on Cancer accreditation is another demonstration of our team’s dedication to clinical excellence” according to Cancer Center Director Robert J. Guasco. Earlier this year, Anderson Regional Cancer Center was recognized as the first cancer treatment center in North America, and second in the world, to interface one of the most advanced radiation delivery systems, TomoTherapy, with a highly effective computerized clinical platform developed by RaySearch Laboratories, USA. “These achievements are a reflection of our commitment to serving the oncology needs of our community with technology, knowledge and compassion,” Guasco said.
The CoC Accreditation Program provides the framework for the Cancer Center to improve its quality of patient care through various cancer-related programs that focus on the full spectrum of cancer care including prevention, early diagnosis, cancer staging, optimal treatment, rehabilitation, life-long follow up for recurrent disease, and end-of-life 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 psychosocial 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, Anderson Regional Cancer Center maintains a cancer registry and contributes data to the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB. This nationwide oncology outcomes database is the largest clinical disease registry in the world. Data, on all types of cancer, is tracked and analyzed through the NCDB and used to explore trends in cancer care. CoC-accredited cancer centers, in turn, have access to information derived from this type of data analysis, which are used to create national, regional, and state benchmark reports. These reports help CoC facilities with their quality improvement efforts.
Dr. Matt Cassell, Chairman of the Oncology Care Committee, said, “As cancer care providers, we owe it to our patients, their families and friends, and our community to provide comprehensive, state-of-the-art care to the best of our ability. I am certain that we do that at Anderson Regional Cancer Center, as well as at the Oncology Unit in the hospital, and receiving this accreditation verifies that commitment.”
About Commission on Cancer
Established in 1922 by the American College of Surgeons, the 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.
