Vidant Medical Center receives three-year accreditation with commendations for cancer program | Eastern North Carolina Now

    For Immediate Release:

    Vidant Medical Center receives three-year accreditation with commendations for cancer program

    GREENVILLE     The Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons has granted Vidant Medical Center a three-year accreditation with commendations as an Academic Comprehensive Cancer Program. The areas of commendation include: cancer committee attendance, clinical trial accrual, cancer registrar education, data abstracting and submission timeliness, and accuracy of data.

    A facility receives accreditation following an on-site visit by a physician cancer program surveyor, during which the facility must demonstrate a level of compliance with the Cancer Program Standards 2012: Ensuring Patient-Centered Care. These standards ensure that cancer programs provide all patients with a full range of diagnostic, treatment and supportive services. In addition to the site visit, the approval award is also based on consensus by the CoC staff and the Program Review Subcommittee for the standards.

    "We are very proud to have received this accreditation for our cancer program," said Todd Hickey, senior vice president, Vidant Medical Center. "Our team of expert oncology physicians, nurses and staff has available to them the latest technologies to care for the people of eastern North Carolina. Thousands of patients are treated each year at our facility and can expect the highest standard of clinical quality. Many thanks to our dedicated medical team who helped us maintain this high level of care."

    Vidant Medical Center Cancer Services strives to provide comprehensive cancer services to the citizens of eastern North Carolina through prevention, screening and early detection programs and services, and cancer treatment. The cancer program provides innovative care by coordinating all aspects of treatment for cancer patients. The cancer service line encompasses the following:

   •  Patient navigation program

   •  Outreach, including screenings, grant writing and community resources

   •  Inpatient/outpatient units, including over 76 beds for medical/surgical oncology units, a 34 chair/bed infusion center and the Gamma Knife Center

   •  Support/survivorship services, such as support groups, patient education, counseling, nutritional services, Survivorship 101 and Camp Dove

    Multidisciplinary conferences/care provided by physicians at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, the Leo W. Jenkins Cancer Center, and private practice physicians.

    The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 1.6 million cases of cancer will be diagnosed this year. There are currently more than 1,500 CoC-approved cancer programs in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, representing nearly 30 percent of all hospitals. These hospitals diagnose and/or treat 70 percent of newly diagnosed cancer patients each year.

    Established in 1922 by the American College of Surgeons, the CoC is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to improving survival rates and quality of life for cancer patients through standard-setting, prevention, research, education, and the monitoring of comprehensive quality care.

    The core functions of the CoC include setting standards for quality and multidisciplinary cancer patient care; surveying facilities to evaluate compliance with the patient-centered standards; collecting standardized and quality data from approved facilities; support routine cancer control; monitor clinical surveillance activities and using the data to develop effective educational interventions to improve cancer prevention, early detection, care delivery and cancer care outcomes.

    Receiving care at a CoC-approved cancer facility ensures that a patient will have access to:

   •  quality care close to home

   •  comprehensive care, including a range of state-of-the-art services and equipment

   •  a multispecialty team approach to coordinate the best treatment options

   •  access to cancer-related information and education

   •  access to patient-centered services such as psychosocial distress screening and navigation

   •  options for genetic assessment and counseling and palliative care services

   •  ongoing monitoring and improvement of care

   •  assessment of treatment planning based on evidence-based national treatment guidelines

   •  information about ongoing clinical trials and new treatment options

   •  follow-up care at the completion of treatment, including a survivorship care plan

    a cancer registry that collects data on type and stage of cancers and treatment results and offers life-long patient follow-up.

    For more information about cancer care at Vidant Medical Center, visit www.vidanthealth.com/cancer.

    Vidant Health, a mission-driven, not-for-profit corporation, owns, leases or has a majority membership interest in nine eastern North Carolina hospitals and has a management agreement with one other. The health system includes Albemarle Health, Vidant Beaufort Hospital, Vidant Bertie Hospital, Vidant Chowan Hospital, Vidant Duplin Hospital, Vidant Edgecombe Hospital, The Outer Banks Hospital, Vidant Medical Center, Vidant Pungo Hospital, Vidant Roanoke-Chowan Hospital, Vidant Home Health and Hospice, Vidant Wellness Centers, Vidant Medical Group and is affiliated with the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University. On the web at www.vidanthealth.com