On April 5, ASCO announced that Instituto de Oncologia do Vale (IOV) was the first practice in Brazil to receive Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI®) certification through the QOPI Certification Program, LLC (QCP). IOV is the second international practice to achieve this milestone in demonstrating the quality of care it provides to oncology patients.
IOV’s location on R. Major Antônio Domingues in São José dos Campos, São Paulo, achieved this 3-year certification in early February, after completing the certification program for outpatient hematology-oncology practices that meet nationally recognized standards for quality cancer care. IOV has 6 facilities and is part of a national oncology group named Oncologia D’Or, with another 33 facilities in 6 states. In 2017, IOV Taubaté unit and two other Oncologia D’Or facilities will work toward achieving certification in a staged manner.
QOPI Certification Program
QOPI, which ASCO established more than 10 years ago, is a voluntary self-assessment and improvement program to assist hematology-oncology and medical oncology practices in assessing the quality of the care they provide to patients. Through QOPI, practices abstract data from patients’ medical records up to twice per year and enter this information into a secure database. At present, more than 900 oncology practices have registered for the QOPI program.
The QOPI Certification Program, which began in 2010, offers specialty certification to outpatient oncology practices demonstrating commitment to quality. Each practice completes a comprehensive, voluntary assessment of its site against specified standards that are consistent with national guidelines. Those practices that earn the QOPI Certification™ designation have scored well on key QOPI quality measures and have met chemotherapy safety standards established by ASCO and the Oncology Nursing Society in areas of treatment that include:
- Treatment planning
- Staff training and education
- Chemotherapy orders and drug preparation
- Patient consent and education
- Safe chemotherapy administration
- Monitoring and assessment of patient well-being
Currently, more than 300 practices have achieved QOPI Certification™. In June 2016, ASCO announced that the Contemporary Oncology Team of Athens, Greece, had become the first international practice to receive QOPI Certification™.
QOPI and the QOPI Certification Program are projects dedicated to innovative quality improvement programs. For more information, please visit www.instituteforquality.org/qopi-qcp. ■
© 2017. American Society of Clinical Oncology. All rights reserved.
