RMH Hahn Cancer Center earns quality accreditation for radiation oncology

The RMH Hahn Cancer Center has been awarded a three-year term of accreditation in radiation oncology as the result of a recent review by the American College of Radiology (ACR).

Radiation oncology (radiation therapy) is the careful use of high-energy radiation to treat cancer. A radiation oncologist may use radiation to cure cancer or to relieve a cancer patient’s pain.

“We are pleased to receive this accreditation because it acknowledges our passion for, and commitment to, safety and quality care for our patients,” said Janet Macarther, director of Oncology and Hospice Services.

The ACR is the nation’s oldest and most widely accepted radiation oncology accrediting body, with nearly 500 accredited sites, and 25 years of accreditation experience. The ACR seal of accreditation represents the highest level of quality and patient safety. It is awarded only to facilities meeting specific practice guidelines and technical standards developed by ACR after a peer-review evaluation by board-certified radiation oncologists and medical physicists who are experts in the field.

The peer-review evaluation assesses the following:

· Patient care and treatment

· Patient safety

· Personnel qualifications

· Adequacy of facility equipment

· Quality control procedures, and

· Quality assurance programs.

The findings are reported to the ACR Committee on Radiation Oncology Accreditation, which subsequently provides the practice with a comprehensive report it can use for continuous practice improvement.

The RMH Hahn Cancer Center is one of only 11 facilities in Virginia, and the only one in the Shenandoah Valley, to have earned ACR accreditation in radiation oncology.

“This accreditation simply recognizes and confirms the fact that we are doing a good job for our patients,” said radiation oncologist Robert Kyler. M.D.  “Providing safe, high-quality radiation therapy is our utmost concern.”

The ACR is a national professional organization serving more than 36,000 diagnostic/ interventional radiologists, radiation oncologists, nuclear medicine physicians, and medical physicists with programs focusing on the practice of medical imaging and radiation oncology and the delivery of comprehensive health care services.