NEW HYDE PARK, NY – Long Island Jewish Medical Center (LIJ), part of the North Shore-LIJ Health System, has been selected by the Commission on Cancer (CoC) to receive its Outstanding Achievement Award, which recognizes cancer programs that strive for excellence in providing quality care to cancer patients.

“This exceptional designation is reserved for only a few programs in the United States. Based on the daily dedication and expertise of our physicians and staff, we are most pleased that such a prestigious group such as the American College of Surgeons, which established the CoC, has given us this fine recognition of achievement,” said Richard Gralla, MD, vice president of cancer services for the North Shore-LIJ Health System and chief of medical oncology and hematology for North Shore-LIJ’s Monter Cancer Center in Lake Success.

Eligibility and accreditation are granted only to those facilities that have voluntarily committed to provide the best in cancer care and are able to comply with the established CoC standards. Each cancer program must undergo a rigorous evaluation and review of its performance and compliance with CoC standards and on-site evaluation every three years.

“To be chosen among just a few institutions around the country to receive the Outstanding Achievement Award shows that our institution itself has deep commitment to provide the highest quality of care to all our cancer patients. Our Cancer Registry staff members are dedicated to achieve and maintain excellence in each aspect of their work, while all colleagues serving on the Cancer Committee strive to pursue new areas in cancer research as well as community outreach,” said Kanti Rai, MD, chief of hematology/oncology at LIJ Medical Center.” This is an occasion to take pride in our work and to rededicate ourselves and try to continue at this same high level in the future,” he added.

In order to receive the CoC’s Outstanding Achievement Award, a facility must demonstrate a commendation level of compliance with six standards that represent the full scope of the cancer program within five areas of program activities: cancer committee leadership, cancer data management, research, community outreach and quality improvement. The commendation follows an onsite evaluation by a physician surveyor. In addition, a facility receives a compliance rating for the remaining 30 standards. Only 82 programs received the Outstanding Achievement Award as a result of surveys proformed in 2009, which represents just 18 percent of the 432 programs surveyed during the year.
 
There are more than 1,480 CoC-accredited cancer programs across the country. It is these accredited hospitals and treatment centers that diagnose and treat 80 percent of newly diagnosed cancer patients annually. Participating programs are focused on continuum of cancer care, prevention and early detection, pretreatment evaluation, staging, optimal treatment, rehabilitation, surveillance for recurrent disease, support services, end-of-life and lifelong follow-up care.

About North Shore-LIJ Health System
The nation's third largest, non-profit, secular healthcare system, the North Shore-LIJ Health System cares for people of all ages throughout Long Island, Queens and Staten Island – a service area encompassing more than five million people. The winner of the National Quality Forum’s 2010 National Quality Healthcare Award, the North Shore-LIJ Health System consists of 14 hospitals, 17 long-term care facilities, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, three trauma centers, five home health agencies, a hospice network and dozens of outpatient centers. In addition, North Shore-LIJ is partnering with Hofstra University to develop a new medical school. North Shore-LIJ’s owned facilities house about 5,000 beds, employ more than 9,500 nurses and have affiliations with more than 7,500 physicians. Its workforce of about 38,000 is the largest on Long Island and the ninth largest in New York City.  For more information, go to www.northshorelij.com.

Media Contact:
Elaine Wohl
516-465-2600?2615
ewohl@nshs.edu