To promote quality, value, and accountability in cancer care, ASCO recently formed a department focused solely on quality measurement, tools for practice improvement, and using information technology as a key to advancing quality. This new department is tasked with preparing ASCO’s clinical practice guidelines, leading efforts to assist oncology practices in adopting electronic health records and other health information technology, and expanding ASCO’s Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI).
This enhanced focus on quality initiatives is built on more than a decade of investment in advancing the quality of cancer care. Through expanding clinical practice guidelines and related tools for physicians, promoting electronic health records (EHR) adoption and standards, and enhancing quality measurement, ASCO has steadily increased its efforts in this arena. In 2006, ASCO launched QOPI, the first national program to certify quality of care provided in outpatient oncology offices. Since implementation of QOPI, more than 50 practices have received certification and nearly 700 practices have enrolled to participate.
As health reform continues to unfold, value and accountability have become higher priorities among cancer patients and the health-care community as a whole. A major component of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act involves improving quality of care and enhancing participation by patients in selecting and assessing their own treatment.
The rapidly evolving practice environment, growing concerns over health-care costs, and provisions in the health reform legislation prompted ASCO’s Board of Directors to form the new department. Through this department, ASCO will be able to collect, integrate, and analyze its quality initiatives in ways that best leverage quality efforts to help practices and the patients they serve.
ASCO is currently engaged in a national search for a permanent Senior Director of the Quality Department. Deborah Kamin, RN, PhD, is serving in this capacity in the interim, until that position is filled. Dr. Kamin has served as Senior Director of ASCO’s Cancer Policy and Clinical Affairs Department since 1998 but will devote the time needed to establish the Society’s Quality Department and launch its efforts. ■
