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Association of Community Cancer Centers presents Innovator Awards

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PHOENIX – The Association of Community Cancer Centers presented Innovator Awards to seven program members that have developed inventive and cost-saving strategies to improve cancer care delivery here at the National Oncology Conference.

ACCC honored member programs for their solutions to challenges faced by cancer programs and practices, as well as members of multidisciplinary care teams.

“The Innovator Awards represent real-world examples of how our cancer program members develop and implement transformative solutions in the delivery of cancer care,” said Christian G. Downs, MHA, JD, ACCC Executive Director, noting that there were more than 90 applicants.

“Creating innovative programs is one way to improve wellness in the workplace,” said Ali McBride, PharmD, MS, BCOP, incoming ACCC president. “These cancer programs have all created incentive, replicable solutions that improve their programs and their care delivery.

“We are inspired by their examples.”

Award recipients will share their strategies and the lessons they learned with conference attendees.

This year’s recipients are:

• Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Clinical Cancer Center at Froedtert Hospital Campus in Milwaukee.

The center implemented a 24-hour cancer clinic that reduced ED utilization and hospital admissions, and helped decrease radiology, EKG and lab utilization.

• Legacy Cancer Institute in Portland, Ore.

The institute created an oncology pharmacy navigator role to help patients with medication management. The effort has improved patients’ medication adherence and accuracy of patients’ medication lists; helped address medication-related symptoms quickly; helped individuals who struggle to pay for medications; and reduced costs by $235,000 in 1 year.

• Mount Sinai Health System & Tisch Cancer Institute in New York.

The institute’s Department of Radiation Oncology assembled a palliative radiotherapy team specifically for patients with advanced cancer. The effort has reduced hospital stays, saved $20,000 per hospitalized radiation patient, reduced unnecessarily lengthy radiation courses and increased the proportion of patients who met with a palliative care provider within a month of completing radiation.

• Ochsner Health System and Ochsner Cancer Institute in New Orleans.

The Ochsner Precision Cancer Therapies Program, through a partnership with Translational Genomics Institute, makes early-phase clinical cancer trials a viable option for patients in nearby communities. The program uses molecular diagnostic and clinical strategies to deliver personalized treatment to patients and improve care quality.

• Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson Health in Philadelphia.

Jefferson Medical Oncology Associates implemented new processes and tools to ensure a proactive, multidisciplinary team approach for patients on cancer immunotherapies via continuous symptom monitoring and effective management of immune-related adverse events. Banners in the electronic health record identify patients on immunotherapy; clinical algorithms are available around the clock for on-call physicians and to help nursing staff triage patients; and immunotherapy orientation is provided to new nurses.

• Tri-Cities Cancer Center in Kennewick, Wash.

The center implemented a public awareness campaign about the leading causes of cancer death, as well as the importance of smoking cessation and cancer screenings. The center also launched a workplace wellness program that promotes evidenced-based practices to keep employees healthy by targeting the leading causes of cancer-related death.

• The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina Cancer Hospital in Chapel Hill, N.C.

North Carolina Cancer Hospital adopted a closed-system transfer device that saved $39 million in annual drug expenses by reducing waste. At the ACCC conference, hospital representatives will discuss the cost savings, clinical metrics demonstrated through the risk-mitigation strategy, and how the initiative can be modeled as a best practice. – by Joan-Marie Stiglich, ELS

Reference:

ACCC Innovators Awards. Presented at: ACCC National Oncology Conference; October 17-19, 2018; Phoenix