Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/862068
ACCORDING TO THE NIH, Americans over 65 account for 60% of newly diag- nosed cancers each year. In an eŠort to provide higher quality, better coordinated oncology care for this medically complex population, CMS created the Oncology Care Model (OCM). Under this 5-year program, which began in July 2016, physi- cian group practices enter into payment arrangements that include financial and performance accountability for episodes of care surrounding chemotherapy admin- istration to cancer patients. Su m m a Hea lt h Med ica l Group – Oncology is one of 190 group practices in the nation accepted into the OCM prog ra m . Sa meer Ma hesh, M D, is a hematologist-oncologist with Summa Health Cancer Institute and Principal Investigator of OCM at Summa Health. "Approximately 500 practices applied for the OCM grant, and 190 practices were accepted," Dr. Mahesh explains. "We are the only group in the Akron/Canton region, and one of only 12 in Ohio, to have received and implemented this grant." No doubt, Summa Hea lth's ca ncer program's accreditation by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer (CoC) was a key in obtaining this grant. Summa's cancer program is also accredited by the American College of Radiology (ACR) for radiation oncol- ogy and for breast imaging. In addition, it meets quality measures for medical oncology from the American Society of Clinical Oncolog y's Quality Oncolog y Practice Initiative (QOPI), which pro- motes excellence in cancer care by helping oncolog y practices create a culture of self-examination and improvement. Summa Health is also a member of NRG Oncology, a non-profit research organiza- tion formed to conduct oncologic clinical research and to broadly disseminate study results for informing clinical decision making and healthcare policy. ABOUT OCM The CMS Oncology Care Model focuses on Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficia- ries receiving chemotherapy treatment. OCM includes the entire spectrum of care provided to a patient during a six-month episode that begins with chemotherapy, including: + The core functions of patient navigation; + A care plan that contains the 13 com- ponents in the Institute of Medicine Ca re Ma n a gement Pla n out l i ned in the Institute of Medicine report, "Delivering High-Quality Cancer Care: Charting a New Course for a System in Crisis"; + Patient access 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to an appropriate clinician who has real-time access to practice's medi- cal records; and + Treatment with therapies consistent w it h nationa l ly recog n i zed cli n i- cal guidelines. OCM pa r ticipa nts must a lso drive continuous quality improvement through the use of data and certified electronic health record technology. "This program takes care of compre- hensive needs of the cancer patient," says Sameer Mahesh, MD, is a hematologist- oncologist with Summa Health Cancer Institute and Principal Investigator of the Oncology Care Model at Summa Health. at Summa Health The Oncology Care Model PHOTOS COURTESY OF SUMMA HEALTH,•AKRON,•OH 1 0❱❱❱❱❱ H O S P I TA L S P O T L I G H T