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Claxton-Hepburn's breast cancer service in Ogdensburg granted three-year full accreditation

Posted 7/2/12

OGDENSBURG -- Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center breast cancer service has been granted a three-year full accreditation designation by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), a …

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Claxton-Hepburn's breast cancer service in Ogdensburg granted three-year full accreditation

Posted

OGDENSBURG -- Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center breast cancer service has 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 quality breast care and that undergo a rigorous evaluation of their performance. The center must demonstrate compliance with standards established by the NAPBC for treating the full spectrum of breast diseases. The standards include proficiency in leadership, management, research, outreach, professional education and improvement.

The NAPBC is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to the improvement of the quality of care and monitoring of outcomes of patients with disease of the breast. This mission is pursued through standard-setting, scientific validation, and patient and professional education. Its board membership includes professionals from 15 national organizations that reflect the full spectrum of breast care.

The Ogdensburg clinic’s team consists of a surgeon, a radiation oncologist, a medical oncologist and a patient navigator. The team collectively meets with newly diagnosed breast cancer patients to provide a seamless process too effectively and timely help the patient decide the next steps in their care. Kay Zimmer, LMSW and patient navigator stated, “It is very exciting for our county to have this service that has never been available before.” She continued, “The multidisciplinary care provided in one setting is innovative in helping patients make decisions because all of the options are given up front which reduces the anxiety and stress of the situation to make it easier for the patient to decide their treatment route.” Zimmer noted that the multidisciplinary clinic meets every Thursday.

Dr. Kiri Brandy, a surgeon and member of the breast health center team added, “By receiving care at a NAPBC-accredited center, like Claxton-Hepburn’s Breast Health Center, it ensures that the patient will have access to comprehensive care, including a full range of state-of-the-art services, a multidisciplinary team approach to coordinate the best treatment options and information about ongoing clinical trials and new treatment options.” She continued, “Most importantly, our patients are able to get quality breast care close to home.”

Debbie King, radiology manager, said, “By becoming NAPBC accredited, it has given us insight and access to resources throughout the country that have enabled us to improve the quality of breast services that we offer at Claxton-Hepburn.” She continued, “We have been able to compare our services and best practices to other breast centers and through this we have enhanced services and have ranked above national averages in many areas for breast health centers.” She concluded, “We continuously work to provide the best quality of care for our patients here in the North Country.”

For more information, call (888) 908-2462.