WVU breast care program again recognized as one of the nation’s best

Cancer center program re-accredited by NAPBC

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. –The Comprehensive Breast Care Program at WVU Healthcare’s Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center continues to be nationally recognized as one of the best such programs in the country.

The WVU Healthcare program has once again been granted a three-year, full accreditation designation by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), a program administered by the American College of Surgeons.  Accreditation by the NAPBC is only given to those centers that have voluntarily committed to provide the highest level of quality breast care and that undergo a rigorous evaluation process and review of their performance.  The breast care program’s first three-year, full accreditation designation was in 2011.

“This recognition ensures that our breast care program provides nationally recognized high quality care to our patients,” Hannah Hazard, M.D., chief of the WVU Department of Surgery Division of Surgical Oncology, said. “This achievement requires internal accountability and a willingness to be benchmarked against other breast care centers across the country.”

The NAPBC is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to the improvement of the quality of care and monitoring of outcomes of patients with diseases of the breast. It rates how well breast care facilities measure up to its standards of quality care, which include proficiency in the areas of center leadership, clinical management, research, community outreach, professional education, and quality improvement. WVU’s Comprehensive Breast Care Program was 100 percent compliant and exceeded the standard set by the NAPBC for clinical trial accrual.

“The NAPBC chose our Breast Care Program as a model for clinical trial accrual in the NAPBC Best Practice Repository,” Adham Salkeni, M.D., breast cancer specialist at the Cancer Center, said. “The NAPBC standard for compliance in this area is at least 2 percent of eligible patients enrolled in clinical trials; our program has about 25 percent.”   

WVU Healthcare’s comprehensive approach to breast care and breast cancer includes a wide range of services from screening mammograms to survivorship care and points in between, such as minimally invasive biopsy techniques, breast conserving surgery, reconstructive and plastic surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, genetic evaluation, and high-risk management. Additionally, new breast cancer cases are discussed by a multidisciplinary team of clinicians focused and dedicated to the treatment of women with breast cancer.

“Without our multidisciplinary team approach, we would not be able to provide such high quality patient care, which begins at the Betty Puskar Breast Care Center, nationally certified by the American College of Radiology as a breast imaging center of excellence. With the Breast Care Center’s state-of-the-art imaging and biopsy techniques, we are able to provide a comprehensive evaluation of our patients,” Dr. Hazard said. “Our care is not limited to the disease itself but also includes the psychosocial implications to the patients and their families.”

“Without a doubt, we have a top-notch comprehensive breast care program,” Scot C. Remick, M.D., director of the Cancer Center said. “I congratulate our stellar breast care team on achieving the NAPBC’s highest accreditation once again. NAPBC accreditation is the seal of approval for breast centers and formally acknowledges our commitment to providing optimal care for our patients.”

Hazard led the WVU breast care program accreditation process. In addition to her, the breast care program leadership team includes Jessica Partin, M.D., current chair; Dr. Salkeni, co-chair; and Jaime Good, breast program coordinator and clinical data manager.

For information about the Comprehensive Breast Care Program at the WVU Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center, see www.wvucancer.org/patients/Teams/cbcp.

For information about the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers, see www.napbc-breast.org.