Northwell Health Cancer Institute locations at Monter Cancer Center, Northwell Cancer Institute at Huntington, Imbert Cancer Center in Bay Shore and Northwell Health Cancer Institute at Phelps Hospital in Sleepy Hollow have each received certification from the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative Program, LLC (QOPI), an affiliate of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO).
The QOPI certification is valid for three years and signifies Northwell’s oncology practices meet nationally-recognized standards for quality cancer care. QOPI is a voluntary self-assessment and improvement program to help hematology-oncology and medical oncology practices assess the quality of the care they provide to patients. About 300 practices nationwide are currently certified.
“We’re extremely proud to receive this certification from the ASCO’s QOPI® Certification Program,” said Tony Philip, MD, Director of Quality and Patient safety at Northwell Health Cancer Institute. “This recognition highlights our commitment to delivering outstanding cancer care to our patients across the region. Earning the certification took tremendous teamwork among our nurses, pharmacists, physicians and administrative leadership.”
The QOPI® Certification Program for outpatient oncology practices is the first program of its kind for oncology in the nation. The seal designates those practices that successfully meet the standards and objectives of the program, which includes scoring above threshold on the key QOPI® quality measures and meeting chemotherapy safety standards established by ASCO and the Oncology Nursing Society.
QOPI® analyzes individual practice data and compares these to more than 170 evidence-based and consensus quality measures. To become certified, practices have to meet core standards in areas of treatment, including:
- Creating a safe environment—staffing, competencies, and general policy;
- Treatment planning, patient consent, and education;
- Ordering, preparing, dispensing, and administering chemotherapy;
- Monitoring after chemotherapy is administered, including adherence, toxicity, and complications;
- Treatment planning;
- Staff training and education;
- Chemotherapy orders and drug preparation;
- Patient consent and education;
- Safe chemotherapy administration;
- Monitoring and assessment of patient well-being.
Submitted by Northwell Health System
