News

Contact: Mary Roberts

North Platte, Neb., January 11, 2023 – The Great Plains Health Callahan Cancer Center has received re-certification by the QOPI® Certification Program, LLC. The certification validates the emphasis that the Callahan Cancer Center places on outstanding quality and patient care.

The QOPI^® Certification Program staff and task force members verify through an on-site survey that practices highlighted in a submitted evaluation meet core standards in areas of treatment, including:

• Creating a safe environment—staffing, competencies and general policy
• Treatment planning, patient consent and education
• Ordering, preparing, dispensing and administering chemotherapy
• Monitoring after chemotherapy is administered, including adherence, toxicity and complications
• 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.

Great Plains Health first achieved certification in April of 2015. The Callahan Cancer Center is an advanced, one-stop cancer center designed with patient care and convenience in mind. With 15 cancer treatment rooms, an on-site pharmacist and comprehensive cancer services all in the same location, the Callahan Cancer Center’s goal is to make cancer treatment as comfortable and seamless as possible for patients.

“I am proud of the work and effort put forth by all the team members at the Callahan Cancer Center to maintain this re-certification,” said Ivan Mitchell, chief executive officer, Great Plains Health. “It shows our dedication to quality care for every patient.”

The Callahan Cancer Center offers comprehensive cancer screenings, innovative cancer therapies, cancer support service and an outstanding team of physicians.

“Practices that re-certify demonstrate passion for quality care,” said Monica M. Bertagnolli, MD, FACS, FASCO, association chair. “By opting to dedicate time and resources toward this certification, they exemplify what all providers should strive for, in not just meeting guidelines and standards, but exceeding them.”

The QOPI^® Certification Program is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Association for Clinical Oncology (the Association) and an affiliate of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (the Society). The QOPI^® Certification Program builds on the Society’s Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI^®), providing a three-year certification for outpatient hematology-oncology practices that meet nationally recognized standards for quality cancer care.

QOPI^® and the QOPI^® Certification Program are projects dedicated to innovative quality improvement programs. For more information, please visit: https://practice.asco.org/quality-improvement/quality-programs.

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About Great Plains Health

Based in North Platte, Nebraska, Great Plains Health is a fully accredited, 116-bed acute-care regional medical center serving western and central Nebraska, northern Kansas and southern South Dakota. With 90 physicians representing nearly 30 medical specialties, the Great Plains Health system offers advanced health care, including heart and vascular, cancer, and orthopedic surgery services. Great Plains Health is a Level III trauma center, and all of its emergency department physicians are residency-trained and board-certified in emergency medicine. The system employs approximately 1,200 employees and serves a geographic area spanning more than 67,000 square miles. The hospital is accredited by the Center for Improvement in Healthcare Quality (CIHQ) and is home to an American College of Surgeons-accredited cancer center and Level II bariatric surgery program. For more information, visit gphealth.org.

About the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the Association for Clinical Oncology

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (the Society) and the Association for Clinical Oncology (the Association) are committed to making a world of difference in cancer care. The Society and the Association represent nearly 45,000 oncology professionals who care for people living with cancer. Through research, education, and promotion of the highest-quality patient care, the Society works to conquer cancer and create a world where cancer is prevented or cured, and every survivor is healthy. The Association works to ensure that all individuals with cancer have access to high-quality, affordable care; that the cancer care delivery system supports oncology providers in their delivery of optimal cancer care; and that our nation supports federal funding for cancer research as well as efforts centered on cancer prevention, drug development, and clinical trials. Learn more about the Society at www.ASCO.org, explore patient education resources at www.Cancer.Net, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube. Learn more about the Association at www.ascoassociation.org and follow us on Twitter.

About QOPI Certification Program LLC

QOPI^® Certification Program, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Association for Clinical Oncology (the Association) and an affiliate of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (the Society), is dedicated to recognizing exemplary commitment to safety and quality in oncology patient care. Practices that have achieved QOPI^® Certification have scored well on key QOPI^® quality measures and have met chemotherapy safety standards established by the Society and the Oncology Nursing Society in various areas of treatment and chemotherapy safety.