Cancer Center Earns National Accreditation

Mary Bird Perkins – Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Center Earns National Accreditation with Commendation from the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons

  (Baton Rouge, La.) The Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons (ACoS) has granted Three-Year Accreditation with Commendation to Mary Bird Perkins – Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Center.  To earn voluntary 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.  Three-Year Accreditation with Commendation is only awarded to a facility that exceeds standard requirements at the time of its triennial survey. Because it is a CoC-accredited cancer center, the 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. “We are constantly striving for excellence and our reaccreditation confirms that we are on course,” said Linda Lee, Cancer Center administrator. “For patients, this award means they can expect the highest level of cancer care available in a community cancer center program.” In order to receive the commendation designation, facilities must comply with all standards at the time of survey and receive a commendation rating for one or more of the following standards:

• Clinical Trial Accrual
• Cancer Registrar Education
• Public Reporting of Outcomes
• College of American Pathologists Protocols
• Nursing Care
• Rapid Quality Reporting System Participation
• Accuracy/Data Submission to National Cancer Data Base

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 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. “We are honored to help lead the way in developing a nationwide best practice model for community cancer care. For us, it’s about intentionally placing the patient at the center of our focus and delivering the most comprehensive care possible,” said Lee. CoC-accredited facilities diagnose and/or treat more than 70 percent of all newly diagnosed cancer patients.  When cancer patients choose to seek care locally at a CoC-accredited cancer center, they are gaining access to comprehensive, state-of-the-art cancer care close to home. 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 at http://www.facs.org/cancerprogram/index.html.   Mary Bird Perkins—Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Center is the most comprehensive cancer center in Louisiana offering patients the convenience of receiving high-quality, advanced care close to home. The Cancer Center is part of the National Cancer Institute Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP), a group of competitively selected cancer centers that is developing a national model for community cancer care.