July 2002
Highlights for the month:
FORDS Manual Now Available
A complimentary copy of FORDS is available to all approved programs and cancer registries on our Web site at http://www.facs.org/dept/cancer/coc/fordsmanual.html. If you would like to purchase a printed copy at the introductory price of $30.00, you can place an order online through the American College of Surgeons Publications and Services Catalog or by completing the order form and mailing it in along with payment. Both can be found at http://www.facs.org/commerce/2003/catsplash.html.
Highlights
CoC/AJCC On-Site Speaker Requests and Presentations Posted
The number of requests for FORDS, AJCC 6th Edition, and Collaborative Stage presentations has been astounding. Our presentation calendar for September is full and we can no longer take requests. Limited dates are available in October, so if you have not already submitted a request and have a meeting scheduled during that time, please send it in immediately. We will make every effort to accommodate your request, but we cannot guarantee that a speaker will be available.
We've posted a comprehensive list of the organizations hosting presentations and the topics being presented, the date, and the locations on our Web site at http://www.facs.org/dept/cancer/coc/speakerschedule.html. This list will change frequently as we receive additional requests, so check there often for meeting locations near you. Information is also being posted on the NAACCR calendar of events in the Education and Training section of the NAACCR Web site.
Highlights
Guidelines for Merged Facilities
If your facility has, is, or plans to merge in the near future, the Commission on Cancer would like you to review the merged program guidelines presented on our Web site at http://www.facs.org/dept/cancer/coc/guidelinesmerged.html. This detailed information should address many of your questions. Should you need additional information, please contact Bridgett Martin at bmartin@facs.org.
Highlights
Proposed Standards Questionnaire Results
The CoC thanks all cancer program team members that took the time to complete our questionnaire on the proposed revisions of our cancer program standards. There are clearly some of areas that received the most response and comment. From these responses, the Cancer Program Standards Workgroup learned that:
- Developing annual goals and monitoring cancer conference activity would have little impact on the cancer committee activity in approved programs.
- Most programs use a staging form to record the AJCC stage in the medical record
- The cancer registry is staffed by a CTR in most programs
The complete results of the questionnaire will be posted on our Web site in the upcoming weeks.
Highlights
2002 Survey Review Process
Since the CoC is working to update the Cancer Program Standards, the Program Review Subcommittee has implemented a more flexible approach to interpreting selected mandatory standards for surveys performed in 2002 and early 2003. This flexible approach should enable more programs to earn a full three-year approval.
Highlights
FIPS Update
Thank you, FIPS participants! To date, 60% (865) of CoC-Approved Programs have shared their facility information with the American Cancer Society (ACS). This is a wonderful opportunity to market your cancer programs services to the public. If you have not determined whether or not your facility would like to participate in FIPS, or would like more information about the FIPS program, please e-mail FIPS@facs.org for a free Powerpoint presentation that you may share with your cancer committee.
Site enhancements coming soon. We are pleased to announce that we will be making several FIPS Web site enhancements during the next month. For example, more clearly stated menu selections will help ease navigation and select pages will contain data entry tips. If you have comments or suggestions, please send them to FIPS@facs.org.
Please update Research Activities page. We recently sent an e-mail to your facilities. We ask that participating programs update the Research Activities page with their 2001 patient accrual figures. For your convenience, we have deleted the previously entered 2000 figures. Your data will continue to be shared with the ACS and your participation will not be affected in the interim.
FIPS survey mailed. A FIPS survey was recently mailed to those cancer programs that have not yet completed the FIPS form online. We would like to know why your program has not participated. We'd also like to know your barriers to participation and we'd like to hear your suggestions for enhancements and improvements. If your facility has received this survey, please take a moment to indicate the facility's reasons for nonparticipation. Again, the FIPS data sharing project is voluntary, but if your facility does not plan to participate, we simply ask that you send an e-mail to FIPS@facs.org (please send a copy to your cancer committee chair as well) and indicate your reasons for nonparticipation.
Highlights
NCDB Benchmark Reports Now Include 1999 Data
The CoC will update its Web-based NCDB Benchmark Reports application on July 29, 2002. This easy-to-use application is available for public use. Reports include patient demographics, tumor characteristics, treatment, and survival outcomes data for 14 major cancer sites using more than 3.5 million cases submitted to the NCDB for the diagnosis years 1994 through 1999. In addition, calculated five-year observed survival rates are available for the same 14 cancer sites using over 1 million cases diagnosed in the years 1993 and 1994. "Help" screens will be available to assist users in navigating the application and technical assistance will be available from NCDB staff. To access the Benchmark Reports, go the http://www.facs.org/dept/cancer/index.html, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on either the "NCDB Benchmark Reports" or "NCDB Survival Reports" button. Confidentiality is a priority and ALL patient and facility identifying information has been removed from the data accessed by the Benchmark Reports program.
Highlights
HIPAA Compliance Statement
Hospitals, physicians, and registrars across the country are working to become compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) regulations. The Commission on Cancer and the American College of Surgeons are also committed to implementing appropriate policies, procedures, and information systems to fully comply with the rules and regulations concerning privacy of patient data under HIPAA.
Highlights
Standard 7.2.1: Quality Management Clarifications
For 2002: Commission on Cancer approved programs are currently required to complete two quality management studies annually. Previously, programs could utilize the CoC's Patient Care Evaluation (PCE) Studies or develop their own to be compliant with Standard 7.2.1. For 2002, the CoC is not releasing any PCEs, so individual facilities are responsible for conducting their own studies.
These studies should focus on areas of interest to the cancer committee where the evaluation of activity may lead to an opportunity to improve patient care. The cancer committee must be involved in the entire process beginning with the development of criteria, collection of data, and analysis or evaluation of the results. The committee should then make recommendations for improvements. Documentation of this process must be maintained in the cancer committee minutes. Study examples include physician staging in the medical record, pain management, care paths, and site-focused studies that include survival evaluation. For a more extensive list of sample quality management studies, review the CoC publication, The Complete Guide to Interpreting Cancer Program Standards, Chapter 7, page 79.
For 2003: The CoC has formed 12 site-specific Disease Site Teams. These teams are charged with reviewing, analyzing, and publishing new and existing data from the National Cancer Data Base that will focus on treatment patterns and outcomes. The teams will begin meeting this Fall and will also be responsible for developing hypothesis-driven PCE-type special studies. These studies will be smaller, more focused, and use case samples. The CoC intends to release one or two of these studies in 2003.
For further questions or additional information please contact Nancy Etzold, CTR via e-mail at netzold@facs.org or by phone at (312) 202-5291.
Highlights
Spotlight on CoC Member Organizations: ASCRS
The multidisciplinary Commission on Cancer (CoC) membership includes representatives from 37 national, professional organizations involved in cancer care. In this and subsequent issues of CoC Flash, we will highlight one of our member organizations and provide an update on our collaborative activities.
The American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS) has been a member of the Commission on Cancer since 1991. Their current representative is David Schoetz, Jr., MD, FACS, from the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, MA. The mission of the ASCRS is to ensure high quality patient care by advancing the science, prevention, and management of disorders and diseases of the colon, rectum, and anus. The society spends in excess of $100,000 annually to publicize and promote the activities of Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month (March), and to provide informational materials to patients and physicians. The ASCRS supports the activities of the CoC through Dr. Schoetz's membership on the Colorectal Disease Site Team. This team, like others, is charged with reviewing, analyzing, and publishing new and existing data on treatment patterns and outcomes identified through the National Cancer Data Base of the CoC. We invite you to learn more about the ASCRS by visiting their Web site at http://www.fascrs.org.
Highlights
Benefit of Being An Approved Program
You'll have the opportunity to participate in a network of quality cancer programs that provide care to 80 percent of newly diagnosed cancer patients.
Highlights
To Subscribe to CoC Flash
CoC Flash is e-mailed automatically each month to individuals for whom the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons has an e-mail address. If you wish to continue to receive the newsletter on a monthly basis, you need do nothing. You can discontinue your subscription by writing to coc@facs.org and requesting that your name be deleted from the database. Individuals not currently receiving the newsletter may subscribe to the publication by sending an e-mail containing your name, address, telephone and fax numbers to coc@facs.org, and asking to be added to our electronic distribution database.
To Submit Information
CoC Flash will accept submissions received by the third week of each month. However, the CoC reserves the right to decide whether or not the materials are appropriate for inclusion. Information for CoC Flash should be timely, newsworthy, brief, and of use and interest to the constituents of the Commission, which include cancer registrars, liaison physicians, cancer committee chairs, and other cancer-oriented health care professionals. To submit material, send it to coc@facs.org.
The Commission on Cancer is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to reducing the morbidity and mortality of cancer through education, standard setting, and the monitoring of quality care. CoC Flash is a monthly news service for constituents of the CoC provided by the Commission and the Cancer Program of the American College of Surgeon.
CoC Flash
Commission on Cancer
