Newswise — CHICAGO (December 8, 2015): The Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) has released the Standards Manual for the Oncology Medical Home (OMH) Accreditation Program. The standards are established around the OMH model that provides comprehensive and continuous medical care to patients with the goal of obtaining maximized health outcomes.
The process of applying for and maintaining CoC-OMH accreditation is a voluntary commitment by an Oncology Medical Home to ensure that all of its cancer patients will receive the right treatment at the right time in the right place. The commitment to meeting the standards and reviewing performance data ensures patients will have access to the full scope of services required to diagnose, treat, rehabilitate, and support patients with cancer and their families.
“The goal of the Oncology Medical Home accreditation program is to transform oncology practices to decrease variability, improve efficiency, and to optimize patient outcomes,” stated the current CoC Chair, Daniel P. McKellar, MD, FACS. “As oncology transforms from a fee-for-service model to a value based payment system our Oncology Medical Home standards will help practices to transition to this new model and allow them to demonstrate their commitment to quality and efficiency in cancer care.”
The OMH standards focus on five key elements of an effective OMH and access to care:
- Patient Engagement
- Expanded Access
- Evidence-based Medicine
- Comprehensive Team-based Care
- Quality Improvement
In 2016, the CoC is working to survey to 30-50 OMH practices as part of a beta pilot accreditation process. The OMH Standards Manual provides information on the accreditation process and readiness to earn accreditation through the OMH Accreditation Program. Future information will be forthcoming for those practices interested in applying to be accredited.
The OMH Standards Manual is available to download at https://www.facs.org/quality-programs/cancer/coc/omh-program.
# # #
About the Commission on CancerThe Commission on Cancer (CoC), a quality program of the American College of Surgeons (ACS), recognizes cancer care programs for their commitment to providing comprehensive, high-quality, and multidisciplinary patient centered care. The CoC is dedicated to improving survival and quality of life for cancer patients through standard-setting, prevention, research, education, and the monitoring of comprehensive quality care. Through the CoC, cancer programs have access to reporting tools to aid in benchmarking and improving outcomes at their facility as well as educational and training opportunities, development resources, and advocacy.
About the American College of SurgeonsThe American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational organization of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and improve the quality of care for surgical patients. The College is dedicated to the ethical and competent practice of surgery. Its achievements have significantly influenced the course of scientific surgery in America and have established it as an important advocate for all surgical patients. The College has more than 80,000 members and is the largest organization of surgeons in the world. For more information, visit www.facs.org.
RSS