Joseph O. Jacobson, MD, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses a session he co-chaired on the thorny questions of how best to improve cancer care.
Patricia A. Ganz, MD, of the University of California at Los Angeles, the 2016 winner of the Joseph V. Simone Award, summarizes her “Lecture for Excellence in Quality and Safety in the Care of Patients With Cancer.”
Lawrence N. Shulman, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania, discusses his paper, which explores lessons learned from analyses of the National Cancer Data Base. (Abstract 173)
Kerin B. Adelson, MD, of the Yale Cancer Center, discusses the major healthcare cost drivers at the end of life—aggressive treatments, emergency room visits, and futile care—and strategies for improving value. (Abstract 3)
Sandra L. Wong, MD, of the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, summarizes three abstracts for which she was the discussant. The topics were rates of surgical site infections, an online resource for hospital cancer surgery volumes, and barriers to oncology appointments at comprehensive cancer centers. (Abstracts 171, 172, 55)
Randall F. Holcombe, MD, of the Icahn Mount Sinai School of Medicine, discusses the challenges of delivering quality care in an academic setting at a large hospital.
