Mary Bird Perkins Receives Outstanding Achievement Award

The Commission on Cancer recognizes Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center consecutively with prestigious award.

(Baton Rouge, La.) Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center (Cancer Center) was recently presented with the 2014 Outstanding Achievement Award by the Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons (ACoS). The Cancer Center, Louisiana’s only facility to receive this recognition, has received the award for two consecutive (three-year) survey cycles, the first time in 2011. In addition, the Cancer Center is one of a select group of only 75 U.S. healthcare facilities with accredited cancer programs to receive this national honor for surveys performed last year. The award acknowledges cancer programs that achieve excellence in providing quality care to cancer patients. “We are extremely proud of the Cancer Center’s physicians and team members for achieving such an esteemed recognition. We always aspire to a higher level of care for patients and the Outstanding Achievement Award validates our ability to sustain clinical excellence and overall patient experience,” said Linda Lee, Cancer Center administrator. “As the Gulf South destination for cancer care, we provide innovative and comprehensive services so that patients throughout the southeast can remain closer to home and access exceptional care throughout their cancer journey.” The purpose of the Outstanding Achievement Award is to raise awareness of the importance of providing quality cancer care at healthcare institutions throughout the U.S. In addition, it is intended to:

• Educate cancer patients on available quality-care options.
• Motivate other cancer programs to work toward improving their level of care.
• Facilitate dialogue between award recipients and healthcare professionals at other cancer facilities for the purpose of sharing best practices.
• Encourage honorees to serve as quality-care resources to other cancer programs.

The Cancer Center was evaluated on 34 program standards categorized within one of the four cancer program activity areas: cancer committee leadership, cancer data management, clinical services and quality improvement. The Cancer Center was further evaluated on seven commendation standards. For a list of all cancer programs in the U.S. that received the award in 2014, visit: https://www.facs.org/quality-programs/cancer/accredited/about/outstanding/2014 As the Gulf South destination for cancer care, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center offers advanced technology and services provided by nationally-recognized doctors and other oncology health professionals who have dedicated their lives to fighting the disease. The Cancer Center is consistently recognized for its dedication to offering best-practice, comprehensive care at every stage of the cancer journey. Established in 1922 by the ACS, 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. The CoC provides the public with information on the resources, services and cancer treatment experience for each CoC-accredited cancer program. The CoC’s accreditation program encourages hospitals, treatment centers, and other facilities to improve their quality of patient care through various cancer-related programs. For more information on the CoC, visit: www.facs.org/cancer/index.html.