Clinical Centers of Excellence: Gynecologic Oncology

Quality medical care can be found in every specialty in any corner of the country, but some clinical centers rise above the pack.

Some institutions are known throughout the medical community for their overall expertise, but we saw a need for a physician’s guide to the best in various specialties. This is the second in Medical Economics’ monthly series: Clinical Centers of Excellence.

The purpose is to recognize those institutions that bring a little something extra to a specialty, whether through research, patient care, or community outreach-or all of these areas.

We’ve chosen the centers based on information from key opinion leaders (KOLs) in various specialties and through physician surveys. To help choose the Clinical Centers of Excellence in gynecologic oncology, we surveyed readers of Contemporary OB/GYN and spoke with gynecologic oncologist KOLs. We then asked the centers to report data and other information, which was verified whenever possible.

Geography is a factor as well: Patients, after all, are more likely to visit a center that is nearby rather than one across the country.

The institutions profiled in this issue-Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Duke University Medical Center, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, and Yale Cancer Center-have gynecologic oncology programs that are among the finest in the country.

Though we could not profile them all, we have included a list of the other Clinical Centers of Excellence identified by our surveys and KOLs. We do not rank the centers relative to each other, but explain what makes each one unique.

This series will provide physicians with a valuable tool when considering where to refer challenging cases.

Advanstar Clinical Centers of Excellence
Institutions under consideration to be named Clinical Centers of Excellence are asked to self-report data, which is checked against publicly available information. Depending on the specialty, these criteria may include:

Quality-improvement initiatives under way

Community outreach

National awards and recognition

Participation in national therapeutic initiatives (e.g., the National Cancer Consortium, Children’s Oncology Group, etc.)

Number of referrals for the particular specialty area

Number of international referrals

Number of patients treated/procedures performed per year

Number of research protocols engaged in annually

Number of medication/surgical errors

Systems in place to prevent errors

Outcomes data (e.g., mortality/morbidity rates, unnecessary readmission rates, etc.)

Level of technological equipment on site