|
Reston, VA – September 22, 2009 - Clinical Care Options (CCO), a leader in the development of innovative interactive online, print, and live medical education for healthcare professionals, announced the formation of a unique collaboration with the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN). CCO has been granted special permission by NCCN to develop Internet-based educational tools that will automate the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™ and provide a unique interface for greater understanding and applicability of them in daily clinical practice.
“NCCN continuously looks for creative solutions to further empower the oncology community to implement the NCCN Guidelines, which are developed through an explicit review of evidence integrated with expert medical judgment,” said Bill McGivney, CEO of the NCCN, “We are excited about CCO’s interactive decision support tool technology and their sophisticated editorial capabilities, both of which support our mission of improving patient care.”
In each case, the current version of the NCCN Guideline for a specific disease area or supportive care approach will be adapted to a CCO automated tool that allows clinicians to enter specific clinical scenarios and rapidly obtain recommendations and references that support the NCCN Guideline. Accompanying each automated NCCN Guideline will be an interactive CME-certified educational module that will provide clinicians an in-depth analysis of the evidence-based science that underpins the NCCN Guidelines and their application.
“We are extremely pleased to have been selected by the prestigious NCCN for this collaboration,” said Jeffrey L. Drezner, MD, PhD, CEO of CCO. “We look forward to applying our state-of-the-art proprietary technology to make these programs freely available for oncologists around the world through the CCO Web site.”
About the National Comprehensive Cancer Network
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network, a 501(c)3 non-profit alliance of twenty-one (21) of the world's leading cancer centers, is an authoritative source of information to help patients and health professionals make informed decisions about cancer care. Through the collective expertise of NCCN Member Institutions, NCCN develops, updates, and disseminates a complete library of clinical practice guidelines. NCCN’s spectrum of programs emphasizes improving the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of oncology practice. Programs include: NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™, the NCCN Drugs and Biologics Compendium™, NCCN Chemotherapy Order Templates™, Oncology Outcomes Database Project, Oncology Research Program, educational conferences and symposia for clinicians, JNCCN – The Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, and collaborations with managed care organizations. These and other NCCN programs and resources have the overriding objective of informing and improving decisions and outcomes for patients whom we serve.
The NCCN Guidelines are widely recognized and used as the standard for clinical policy in oncology in both the academic and community settings and significantly influence appropriate practice patterns and prescribing behavior. A recent NCCN survey demonstrated that ninety-five percent (95%) of clinicians who use the NCCN Guidelines agree that they are useful in making patient care decisions. Increasingly, recommendations in both the NCCN Guidelines and in the NCCN Drugs and Biologics Compendium are being used by public and private payers to establish coverage policies. As of June 5, 2008, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has recognized the NCCN Drugs & Biologics Compendium™ as a mandated reference for the establishment of coverage policy and coverage decisions regarding the use of drugs and biologics in cancer care. The NCCN Drugs & Biologics Compendium™ will be used by CMS for national coverage determinations and by intermediaries and carriers for locoregional determinations. NCCN is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education to physicians.
About Clinical Care Options
Clinical Care Options, a leader in the development of innovative interactive CME-certified education programs for healthcare professionals, creates and publishes original continuing medical education and information resources that translate the latest developments in science and medicine into treatment options. Using internationally renowned experts, Clinical Care Options develops exceptional editorial content for its proprietary state-of-the-art technology and distributes it online via its own specialty portals in HIV, hepatitis, and oncology/hematology. In addition to its industry-leading Web-based programs, Clinical Care Options disseminates the latest in medical treatment through live meetings and print materials including books and monographs. For more information about the company and its programs, visit its Web site at www.clinicaloptions.com.
|