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Oncologist compensation deserves evidence-based scrutiny and analysis
As community-based oncology practices have faced continued cutbacks in reimbursements under the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act and now through sequestration, many have had to close satellite sites, cut back on their supportive services, join networks – where possible – or hospitals or health systems, and scramble to engage payers in rethinking payment models. They have done so not only to cover their costs for the technological outlay, staffing, and other overheads necessary for them to provide quality oncology care, but also to ensure competitive compensation packages for their teams of highly trained, specialized physicians, midlevel practitioners, and nursing and administrative staff…
*Click on the link to the left for a PDF of the full article.
As community-based oncology practices have faced continued cutbacks in reimbursements under the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act and now through sequestration, many have had to close satellite sites, cut back on their supportive services, join networks – where possible – or hospitals or health systems, and scramble to engage payers in rethinking payment models. They have done so not only to cover their costs for the technological outlay, staffing, and other overheads necessary for them to provide quality oncology care, but also to ensure competitive compensation packages for their teams of highly trained, specialized physicians, midlevel practitioners, and nursing and administrative staff…
*Click on the link to the left for a PDF of the full article.
As community-based oncology practices have faced continued cutbacks in reimbursements under the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act and now through sequestration, many have had to close satellite sites, cut back on their supportive services, join networks – where possible – or hospitals or health systems, and scramble to engage payers in rethinking payment models. They have done so not only to cover their costs for the technological outlay, staffing, and other overheads necessary for them to provide quality oncology care, but also to ensure competitive compensation packages for their teams of highly trained, specialized physicians, midlevel practitioners, and nursing and administrative staff…
*Click on the link to the left for a PDF of the full article.
Survivorship: Evaluating needs and the integrated model
Who is a survivor? Am I a survivor? Are you a survivor? What does a survivor need? How can community oncologists help? These are among the many questions a community oncologist can expect to hear during the course of treating a cancer patient, from the diagnosis, through the decisions about therapy, at all stages of treatment, and well into aftercare and follow-up. A “patient” used to be someone in active treatment, and a “survivor” was someone who had been free of disease for 5 years. More recently, Ellen Stoval of the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship noted that the term “cancer survivor” can be used “to describe anyone who has been diagnosed with cancer as well as caregivers and loved ones of those diagnosed with the disease.”1 Her broader perspective more accurately captures the multifaceted nature of survivorship...
*For a PDF of the full article, click on the link to the left of this introduction.
Who is a survivor? Am I a survivor? Are you a survivor? What does a survivor need? How can community oncologists help? These are among the many questions a community oncologist can expect to hear during the course of treating a cancer patient, from the diagnosis, through the decisions about therapy, at all stages of treatment, and well into aftercare and follow-up. A “patient” used to be someone in active treatment, and a “survivor” was someone who had been free of disease for 5 years. More recently, Ellen Stoval of the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship noted that the term “cancer survivor” can be used “to describe anyone who has been diagnosed with cancer as well as caregivers and loved ones of those diagnosed with the disease.”1 Her broader perspective more accurately captures the multifaceted nature of survivorship...
*For a PDF of the full article, click on the link to the left of this introduction.
Who is a survivor? Am I a survivor? Are you a survivor? What does a survivor need? How can community oncologists help? These are among the many questions a community oncologist can expect to hear during the course of treating a cancer patient, from the diagnosis, through the decisions about therapy, at all stages of treatment, and well into aftercare and follow-up. A “patient” used to be someone in active treatment, and a “survivor” was someone who had been free of disease for 5 years. More recently, Ellen Stoval of the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship noted that the term “cancer survivor” can be used “to describe anyone who has been diagnosed with cancer as well as caregivers and loved ones of those diagnosed with the disease.”1 Her broader perspective more accurately captures the multifaceted nature of survivorship...
*For a PDF of the full article, click on the link to the left of this introduction.
SURVIVORSHIP Embracing the ‘new normal’
Since 1971, when President Richard M. Nixon announced the “war on cancer” with the signing of the National Cancer Act, we have seen an increase of 300% in the number of survivors, which is now reaching more than 12 million in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control. By 2020, that number will likely approach 20 million. Investment in research, early detection, and prevention has contributed to making these numbers a reality, and community-based oncology centers have played a critical role in delivering quality care and improved survival numbers based on the findings of that research. Therefore, it is logical that these same networks of community-based providers that have helped create survivors now help take the next step in addressing the needs of cancer patients on their journey to a life beyond cancer.
*For a PDF of the full article, click in the link to the left of this introduction.
Since 1971, when President Richard M. Nixon announced the “war on cancer” with the signing of the National Cancer Act, we have seen an increase of 300% in the number of survivors, which is now reaching more than 12 million in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control. By 2020, that number will likely approach 20 million. Investment in research, early detection, and prevention has contributed to making these numbers a reality, and community-based oncology centers have played a critical role in delivering quality care and improved survival numbers based on the findings of that research. Therefore, it is logical that these same networks of community-based providers that have helped create survivors now help take the next step in addressing the needs of cancer patients on their journey to a life beyond cancer.
*For a PDF of the full article, click in the link to the left of this introduction.
Since 1971, when President Richard M. Nixon announced the “war on cancer” with the signing of the National Cancer Act, we have seen an increase of 300% in the number of survivors, which is now reaching more than 12 million in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control. By 2020, that number will likely approach 20 million. Investment in research, early detection, and prevention has contributed to making these numbers a reality, and community-based oncology centers have played a critical role in delivering quality care and improved survival numbers based on the findings of that research. Therefore, it is logical that these same networks of community-based providers that have helped create survivors now help take the next step in addressing the needs of cancer patients on their journey to a life beyond cancer.
*For a PDF of the full article, click in the link to the left of this introduction.