ACCC Announces 5th Annual Innovator Awards Winners

ROCKVILLE, Md. – Six cancer programs that have exhibited forward-thinking strategic planning and developed pioneering programs and creative solutions have received the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) 2015 Innovator Awards. Innovations pioneered by the award winners include creating a real-time patient locator system to decrease wait times and streamline the chemotherapy and pharmacy processes, launching a STAR “prehab” program to help prepare patients both physically and mentally before surgery, and developing a standardized, integrated database of clinical and business metrics to measure, analyze and improve patient care and operational efficiency.

This year’s winners are:

• Eastern Maine Medical Center (EMMC) Cancer Program, EMMC Cancer Care, Brewer, Maine
• Lancaster General Hospital, Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
• Mary Washington Healthcare Regional Cancer Center, Fredericksburg, Virginia
• PIH Health Comprehensive Community Cancer Program, Whittier, California
• Providence Cancer Center, Portland, Oregon
• Seton Family of Hospitals, Seton Cancer Program, Austin, Texas

"We are honored to recognize programs that are implementing new technologies and fostering innovation that aims to change the way we deliver oncology care,” said ACCC President, Steven D’Amato, BSPharm, BCOP. "We encourage individuals working in cancer care at the community level to consider ways to replicate these programs to improve the patient experience and access to quality cancer care.”

Since 2011, the ACCC Innovator Awards have honored exceptional cancer programs that advance the goal of improving cancer care access, quality and cost-effectiveness. The 2015 award recipients are presenting details of their outstanding programs and replicable models at the ACCC 32nd National Oncology Conference, October 21-23, 2015, in Portland, Oregon.

Following is more information on this year’s award-winning programs:

• Eastern Maine Medical Center (EMMC) Cancer Program, EMMC Cancer Care, Brewer, Maine
  Improve Efficiency, Safety and the Patient Experience With Location Technology
  Wait times are a problem for patients and cancer programs alike. Implementing real-time location system (RTLS) technology enabled EMMC to improve the patient experience by decreasing wait times, expediting patient visits, and streamlining the chemotherapy and pharmacy process. Programmatic benefits include the ability to monitor room and chair availability, record benchmarking data to enhance Lean processes, and improve staff efficiency.
• Lancaster General Hospital, Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
  Community Collaboration Reduces Financial Distress
  Working with its local community, Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute created a Cancer Patient Support Fund for patients experiencing financial distress. Oncology supportive services providers and members of the Lancaster General Health Foundation developed comprehensive funding guidelines and tools, including a financial tracking spreadsheet and process map. Lessons learned provided strategies for fostering philanthropic support in the local community through awareness and relationship building.
• Mary Washington Healthcare Regional Cancer Center, Fredericksburg, Virginia
  Prehab Improves Outcomes for Oncology Patients
  For some newly diagnosed patients, decreased functional status and comorbidities can impact treatment options. This cancer center’s focused “prehab” program couples physical therapy with holistic care that includes nutritional support, stress reduction strategies and nurse navigator intervention. Integrating prehabilitation not only improved patient outcomes post-surgery, it also decreased hospital length of stay for thoracic oncology patients by 40 percent, enabling the center to realize its goal of improving patient outcomes and reducing cost.
• PIH Health Comprehensive Community Cancer Program, Whittier, California
  Engaging Patients and Assisting PCPs in Lung Cancer Screening
  The PIH Health Lung Cancer Screening Program improves the quality and timeliness of lung cancer care and communication among the multidisciplinary treatment team. This nurse practitioner-run program utilizes an enrollment method that allows primary care practitioners (PCPs) to refer patients or for the patient to self-refer. The program schedules screenings, provides shared decision-making counseling, and manages ongoing follow-up, relieving pressure on busy primary care providers. With reallocation of current support resources and minimal investment, this cancer program is on its way to realizing a long-term goal of seeing a decrease in diagnosis of late-stage lung cancer for a high-risk patient population.
• Providence Cancer Center, Portland, Oregon
  Bridging the Gap: A Family Program for Parents With Cancer and Their Children
  The Providence Cancer Center family program offers a supportive group model to deliver early and ongoing intervention and support throughout the cancer care journey. Creating a framework to talk about the impact of cancer on the family, the program offers effective communication techniques and coping strategies and suggests tips for helping families adjust to their “new normal.” Patient survey results reveal significant benefits from this program for the entire family.
• Seton Family of Hospitals, Seton Cancer Program, Austin, Texas
  Fusing Clinical and Business Metrics to Improve Quality and Effect Change
  To stay competitive, the Seton Cancer Program developed a standardized, integrated database of clinical and business metrics to measure, analyze and improve patient care and operational efficiency. This program is putting clinical data to work to build a collaborative environment by using data as a tool to link clinical care teams and benchmark metrics to analyze and create an action plan to change clinical behavior and improve clinical outcomes. In anticipation of where the industry is headed with pay-for-performance reimbursement, this program is looking at appropriate metrics for effecting change for the future.

For more details and videos highlighting each of the programs, go to www.accc-cancer.org/innovator.