Purpose: Ensuring high quality, evidence-based radiation therapy for patients is of the upmost importance. As a part of the largest integrated health system in America, the Department of Veterans Affairs National Radiation Oncology Program (VA-NROP) established a quality surveillance initiative to address the challenge and necessity of providing the highest quality of care for veterans treated for cancer.
Methods and materials: As part of this initiative, the VA-NROP contracted with the American Society for Radiation Oncology to commission 5 Blue Ribbon Panels for lung, prostate, rectal, breast, and head and neck cancers experts. This group worked collaboratively with the VA-NROP to develop consensus quality measures. In addition to the site-specific measures, an additional Blue Ribbon Panel comprised of the chairs and other members of the disease sites was formed to create 18 harmonized quality measures for all 5 sites (13 quality, 4 surveillance, and 1 aspirational).
Conclusions: The VA-NROP and American Society for Radiation Oncology collaboration have created quality measures spanning 5 disease sites to help improve patient outcomes. These will be used for the ongoing quality surveillance of veterans receiving radiation therapy through the VA and its community partners.
Published by Elsevier Inc.