[Quality of Care in Certified Lung Cancer Centers]

Abstract

Background: Since 2008, lung cancer centers can be certified in accordance with the criteria set out by the German Cancer Society (Deutsche Krebsgesellschaft). This paper reports on the certification program for lung cancer centers and presents data on 18 quality indicators collected during certification.

Methods: After checks for plausibility and completeness, data on quality indicators for the 2011 and 2012 patient cohorts as well as data of the treating centers were analyzed descriptively (relative/absolute frequencies, means, site medians).

Patients: 23,222 patients with ICD-10 diagnoses C33 und C34 from 35 (2012) and 24 operating sites (2011), respectively.

Results: From 2011 to 2012, both the number of certified sites and the number of patients treated increased. Fulfillment of the certification requirements is already high and improved slightly from 2011 to 2012. The implementation of indicators without target values is less advanced.

Conclusion: Thanks to the medical and professional associations as well as the oncologic medical experts, the lung cancer certification program is evolving continuously. There has been a steady increase both in the number of patients treated and the number of lung cancer centers; certification requirements are also being increasingly fulfilled.