Marin General Hospital Receives National Outstanding Achievement Award
GREENBRAE, CA — The Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons (ACoS) has granted its Outstanding Achievement Award to Marin General Hospital's Marin Cancer Institute (MCI) in Greenbrae, CA, as a result of surveys performed during 2011. Only 106 out of approximately 3000 cancer centers in the U.S. have received the award, and it has not been given to any other hospital in Marin, Sonoma, San Francisco or San Mateo counties.
Established in 2004, the CoC Outstanding Achievement Award (OAA) is designed to recognize cancer programs that strive for excellence in providing quality care to cancer patients. The award is granted to facilities that demonstrate a Commendation level of compliance with seven standards that represent six areas of cancer program activity: cancer committee leadership, cancer data management, clinical management, research, community outreach, and quality improvement. MCI also was awarded an additional Commendation, bringing the total number of commendations awarded to eight.
The level of compliance with the standards is determined during an onsite evaluation by a physician surveyor. In addition, facilities must receive a compliance rating for the remaining 29 cancer program standards. Together, the 106 programs including MCI represent approximately 22 percent of programs surveyed during 2011. A majority of recipients are community-based facilities; however, teaching hospitals, NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers, VA hospitals, and Network Cancer Programs also received the award.
The Accreditation Program, a component of the CoC which MCI passed in 2011 with a perfect score in all eight areas of measurement, sets quality-of-care standards for cancer programs and reviews the programs to ensure they conform to those standards. Accreditation by the CoC is given only to those facilities that have voluntarily committed to providing the highest level of quality cancer care and that undergo a rigorous evaluation process and review of their performance. To maintain their Accreditation, facilities must undergo an onsite review every three years.
CoC-accredited cancer programs in the US and Puerto Rico, represent 30 percent of all hospitals and diagnose and/or treat more than 70 percent of all newly diagnosed cancer patients each year.
Marin General Hospital's Marin Cancer Institute (MCI) is the county's premier cancer treatment center and has attained national recognition for its innovative approach and quality of care. In addition to its three-year Accreditation and Outstanding Achievement Award from the Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons (ACoS), the physicians of MCI are one of only 100 cancer practices nationwide to receive QOPI (Quality Oncology Practice Initiative) Certification from the American Society of Clinical Oncologists (ASCO).
About the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer Care
Established in 1922 by the American College of Surgeons, the Commission on Cancer is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to improving patient outcomes and quality of life for cancer patients through standard-setting, prevention, research, education, and the monitoring of comprehensive quality care. Its membership includes Fellows of the American College of Surgeons and representatives of 49 national organizations that reflect the full spectrum of cancer care.
The CoC provides the public with information on the resources, services and cancer treatment experience for each CoC-accredited cancer program through the CoC Hospital Locator at http://www.facs.org/cancerprogram/index.html and through the American Cancer Society's National Cancer Information Center at 1-800-ACS-2345.
