NYCBS Newest Practice to Become ASCO Certified
New York Cancer & Blood Specialists (NYCBS), a comprehensive community oncology center with more than 30 locations across New York, is the first practice to be ASCO Certified following the program's successful pilot. It joins 12 ASCO Certified practices and health systems dedicated to ensuring every patient has access to high-quality, patient-centered, evidence-based cancer care.
ASCO Certified is ASCO's flagship quality program, aimed at transforming cancer care delivery by ensuring high-quality, patient-centered, and coordinated care. The program supports practices transitioning to value-based care, certifying those that meet comprehensive, evidence-based oncology medical home standards from ASCO and the Community Oncology Alliance (COA).
"The genesis of us pursuing ASCO Certified began with our close ties to COA. Seeing the ASCO-COA partnership come to life was like seeing the best of both worlds come together—clinical expertise and patient-centered community action," said Jeff Vacirca, MD, CEO of NYCBS.
As one of the first practices to achieve QOPI certification, NYCBS saw starting the ASCO Certified process as a natural progression in its commitment to delivering high-quality care.
Lynn Kay Winters, NYCBS Chief Quality and Learning Officer, noted benefits from the certification, particularly using decision-support tools within the EMR system to deliver consistent, high-quality care. "The process really focuses your efforts and brings internal teams together," she said. "The creativity that comes out of it is satisfying and productive."
Ms. Winters also reported improvements in patient experience, with providers and staff finding new ways to excel even in areas with already high patient satisfaction.
“By continually asking ourselves how we can improve, we have inspired our team to excel in every area, from chronic care management to triage,” Ms. Winters continued. “Our goal is to provide immediate help for symptom management, keeping patients out of the emergency department. That is one way we can contribute to lower-cost, higher-quality care delivery.”
Visit ASCO.org to learn more about ASCO Certified.
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