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John V. Cox, DO, FACP

ASCO is a remarkable organization, diverse in membership and interests. The organization is governed by a strong volunteer Board of Directors that sets priorities for resource allocation through its strategic planning process, and also leads, guides, and focuses the efforts of the other volunteers. Over my term of service as Clinical Practice Committee (CPC) chair-elect and chair, I have come to appreciate how important this coordinating and directing role is to the organization. Every committee within ASCO is tasked by the Board to plan, execute, and evaluate its programs and activities within the framework of the strategic plan. For a copy of the strategic plan, see www.asco.org/asco/downloads/ASCO_Strategic_Plan_2004-2007.pdf.

The Board has delegated much of the coordination function using several mechanisms within ASCO. I'd like to use this space to review the coordinating activities of the CPC. All of the committees have areas of primary focus, though often agenda items will be of interest to several committees. Coordinating such input is key to keeping the organization informed from the varied voices of its membership.

The CPC keeps track of these activities via liaisons. We have been well served by a robust group of volunteer liaisons to multiple committees. The liaison's charge is to transmit information and share perspectives between one group and another. The Board keeps track of ASCO committees through this same mechanism. Every committee in ASCO has a liaison from the Board.

Of the ASCO committees with which the CPC has liaisons, several have had "hot" agendas of great interest to practicing oncologists. These include the Health Services, Cancer Research, Information Technology, and Career Development Committees.

Christopher E. Desch, MD, chairs the Health Services Committee. This committee is the home of several quality issues that are being addressed by ASCO. From this group, the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI) has been monitored and pursued. As many of you are aware, QOPI is an exemplary program of office-based quality improvement. Twenty-three oncology office practices are currently participating in QOPI by defining and using measures of quality in the office. These measures are drawn from consensus of the participants (e.g., Is there a flowsheet on the chart?), from ASCO guidelines (e.g., Are growth factors used in a manner consistent with evidence?), and from lessons learned from ASCO's National Initiative on Cancer Care Quality (NICCQ) project (e.g., Are premenopausal women with breast cancer offered adjuvant chemotherapy?). Within the next year, QOPI participation will be expanded to all ASCO members.¹ This issue's cover story, "The Quality Oncology Practice Initiative: Assessing and Improving Care Within the Medical Oncology Practice" (pages 26-30), contains more information on QOPI.

Health Services is also the committee responsible for development of clinical practice guidelines and technology assessments, and the process of disseminating this information in a useful way. There has been a vigorous exchange of ideas between the CPC and Health Services concerning the process of disseminating and implementing guidelines. I anticipate that tools that translate the guidelines into a more efficient, user-friendly format will help the practicing clinician to adopt evidence-based measures more easily (for an example, see the tear-out, easy-to-duplicate tools for the colorectal cancer guidelines published in the November 2005 issue of JOP^2,3).

Working closely with Health Services is a corps of volunteer members who have been charged with developing a unified ASCO response to the many initiatives in quality and patient safety that press us—the Quality Advisory Group (the QAG). The QAG, in collaboration with the National Coalition of Cancer Survivorship (NCCS), led the development of the recently announced Cancer Quality Alliance. The Alliance is made up of diverse stakeholders in quality—including provider groups, patient advocate groups, government agencies, payers, and accrediting organizations. The goal is to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and to coordinate quality efforts. This group exhibits ASCO's leadership in helping to define ways in which the health care system can be altered to promote quality improvement in oncology.

The Cancer Research Committee, chaired by Michael Freidman, MD, recently reviewed the National Cancer Institute's Clinical Trials Working Group recommendations, which will restructure how clinical research is performed and supported in this country. Of note, in nearly every one of the five sections of recommendations from this working group, the representation and voice of the clinical oncologists were emphasized. Twenty-two specific initiatives were put forward to guide these changes, with the goal of ensuring that high-quality clinical trials are available to our patients (http://integratedtrials.nci.nih.gov/). We all recognize that participation in clinical trials is a necessary component of a quality oncology practice. Clinical oncologists welcome the opportunity to participate in a process that seeks to improve the cancer clinical trials enterprise.

The Information Technology Committee, chaired by Robert Miller, MD, is organizing an effort to evaluate the VistaOffice/Electronic Health Record (EHR) being developed by Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Information on this low-cost, open source EHR product can be found at the CMS Web site and seen in a video demonstration at www.vista-office.com. Working with volunteer physicians and ASCO staff, an effort will be made to evaluate the suitability of VistaOffice for oncology practices, and examine the ways in which an easy-to-install oncology module can be developed and offered to ASCO members nationwide. Information Technology Committee immediate past chair and CPC liaison Edward Ambinder, MD, discussed the future of oncology EHRs extensively in the July 2005 issue of the Journal of Oncology Practice.⁴

Lastly, the Career Development Committee, chaired by Robert Siegel, MD, has taken up issues related to the education of fellows interested in clinical practice. The augmentation of a career development track at the Annual Meeting is being discussed. Owing to another group (the ASCO Workforce in Oncology Task Force, chaired by CPC member Michael Goldstein, MD), this committee recognizes the importance of providing guidance to the limited numbers of fellows, in light of the "aging" of practicing oncologists. Members of the CPC are quite interested in these efforts.

Clearly, ASCO (and the CPC) has its plate full. I would encourage all ASCO members to be aware of the several committees that are addressing the needs of practicing oncologists, and encourage you to volunteer time and effort to help guide your organization. If you have questions regarding any of the issues that I have touched upon, please contact me or ASCO staff. See a listing of ASCO committees and current membership at www.asco.org.

	Notes

 
John V. Cox, DO, FACP, is in private practice of hematology–medical oncology in Dallas, Texas, as a partner of Texas Oncology, PA. He is currently serving as chair of ASCO's Clinical Practice Committee.

	References

Top References

 

1. Neuss MN, Desch CE, McNiff KK, et al: A process for measuring the quality of cancer care: The Quality Oncology Practice Initiative. J Clin Oncol 23:6233-6239, 2005[Abstract/Free Full Text]
2. American Society of Clinical Oncology: Colon cancer follow-up sheet. J Oncol Pract 1:179, 2005[Free Full Text]
3. American Society of Clinical Oncology: Rectal cancer follow-up sheet. J Oncol Pract 1:180, 2005[Free Full Text]
4. Ambinder E: Oncology enters the information age. J Oncol Pract 1:54-65, 2005[Free Full Text]

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