By Cheryl Eash
Many people in our community do not realize how fortunate we are to have the Community Cancer Center right here in Normal. After all, unless you or a loved one is diagnosed with cancer, we don’t typically plan ahead to consider where we would go for treatment. Furthermore, it’s not like grocery shopping where you can go check out each store and determine which one has the best products and services. Thankfully, for anyone in the greater Bloomington-Normal area who is diagnosed with cancer, where to go for treatment is one less decision you’ll need to make.
The very best treatment possible is right here in Normal at the Community Cancer Center. Need proof? Our Cancer Center achieved the Commission on Cancer’s Gold Level Accreditation Status in their recent survey. And they didn’t just achieve the award at the highest rating possible, they also received the Outstanding Achievement Award for the third time in a row. This award is a very big deal.
There are an estimated 1400 cancer programs in the country. Only 74 received the Outstanding Achievement Award this year and just a handful have received it multiple consecutive times. Of the 74 that received the award, five are from Illinois. The Cancer Programs for Advocate Bromenn and OSF St. Joseph’s, coordinated by the Community Cancer Center, were recognized as two of the five.
What exactly does this award mean? It means that of the 34 rigorous quality standards by which cancer centers are evaluated, our community’s cancer programs exceeded the expectations. By being given this award, the Community Cancer Center is ensuring quality comprehensive care, which, for our community, translates into state-of-the-art cancer care close to home. What is fascinating to me, as a non-clinical person, is that in order to get this award, the Cancer Center’s staff has to monitor and direct many factors that are out of their control. Yet, they are judged on their ability to do so. For example, a certain percentage of nurses in the hospitals and at the Cancer Center must have a special oncology certification in order to take care of cancer patients. Regular meetings, called Tumor Boards, which require the participation of various specialists, must be held to discuss the cases of newly diagnosed cancer patients to ensure that patients are receiving the best opportunity for care.
New since this survey period is the Cancer Center’s ability to use the Rapid Quality Reporting System (RQRS) system to keep track of newly diagnosed cancer patients. This ensures high quality care for patients by constantly monitoring compliance with six nationally established standards for care of breast and colorectal cancer patients. The beauty of this system is that it has built-in alerts to prevent these patients from experiencing delays in treatment or from inadvertently falling through the cracks.
We are truly winning the war with cancer, and your Community Cancer Center is one of the facilities in the country that is leading the charge.
For more information, you may contact the Community Cancer Center at 309-451-8500 or www.cancercenter.org.
Photo courtesy of Community Cancer Center