Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/1087868
Director at Oneida Health Cancer Care medica l oncolog y affiliate of Roswell Pa rk Comprehensive Ca ncer Center. Oneida Health Cancer Care mirrors those exacting standards along every step of the oncology care pathway. TUMOR BOARDS FOSTER A TEAM-BASED APPROACH One way Oneida Health and Roswell Park incorporate an interdisciplinary approach to quality assurance and personalized care is through consultative tumor boards comprised of one or more physicians from various oncology disciplines and other specialties, including medical oncology, surgical oncolog y, radiation oncolog y, radiology pathology and gastroenterology. During regularly scheduled meetings, spe- cialists from Oneida Health and Roswell Park connect via telemedicine. Through this collaborative partnership, Oneida Hea lth a nd Roswell Pa rk specia lists participate in a discussion to determine the best course of treatment for specific cases, with Roswell Park oncology experts providing a second opinion as needed. At the end of the tumor board discus- sion, physicians come to an agreement on the next course of treatment for patients. While it is genera lly not feasible for a patient to visit multiple physicians indi- vidually without affecting the timeliness of care, a tumor board brings experts together in a much quicker way to devise a comprehensive care plan that can begin in an expedient manner. "When we need input from specialty services unavailable at Oneida Health, we send that information to Roswell Park for review," says Gene Morreale, President and CEO of Oneida Healthcare. " Pat holog y a nd i m a g i n g s l ides a re available in advance to the tumor board medica l ex per ts v ia telemedicine at both locations." Once the care path has been identified, a dedicated nurse navigator assists patients at Oneida Health Cancer Care along their individual journeys from diagnosis to treatment to follow-ups, coordinating appointment scheduling and acting as an agent of support. It is an overarching approach that benefits patients who wish to receive oncologic care locally. CLINICAL TRIAL ACCESS W hen patients receive treatment at Oneida Health Cancer Care, they also gain access to clinical trials provided at Roswell Park. "Roswell Park gives our patients direct access to one of the largest phase 1 clini- cal trial programs in New York State," Dr. El-Naghy says. "These clinical trials are where innovations come from and where standards of care are established." Having access to clinica l tria ls, no mat ter t he sta ge of ca ncer — newly diagnosed, active treatment, remission or recurrence — is another key to the com- prehensive approach that Oneida Health Cancer Care provides its patients. Since Roswell Park clinical trials are included in the oncolog y care pathways Oneida Health Cancer Care uses, Dr. El-Naghy is able to identify whether a patient may be eligible for a clinical trial. When patients are interested, nurse navigators aid in the transference of care to Roswell Park, which eliminates patients having to gain access to other trials or travel to New York City to access a clinical trial treatment option. Roswell Park also provides care if an Oneida Health Cancer Care patient requires specia lty surgica l treatment with the additional advantage of having follow-up patient care at Oneida Health Cancer Care. AN INFUSION CENTER WITH LEADING-EDGE TECHNOLOGY Oneida Health is known to offer advanced technologies that many other rural facili- ties cannot match, and the Oneida Health Cancer Care capabilities are no exception. "The technology in our telemedicine room was a priority for us," says Mary Pa rr y, Vice President of Operations and Chief Operating Officer at Oneida Healthcare. "We have a microscope that allows us to project slides not only here, but also at Roswell Park, so experts there can review them — simultaneously, if needed. We extended that position to the chemotherapy infusion pumps we use, and we purchased advanced equipment for the infusion space, as well. We built a USP 797/800-compliant pharmacy right in the cancer center, where a pharmacist compounds cancer-battling drugs on-site." The infusion area was thoughtfully designed with patient satisfaction and safety as top priorities. "We built the space to ensure patient comfort, effective infection control and staff satisfaction," Morreale says. "We were Opening June 2019, the Dorothy G. Griffin Radiation Oncology Center is located at 601 Seneca Street, Oneida. Medical staff in Oneida can seamlessly communicate about individual treatment plans for patients with Roswell Park's Tumor Board. M D N E W S . C O M /// M D N E W S C E N T R A L N E W Y O R K ■ 2 019 1 5