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“The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval affirms that Norwalk Hospital is doing the right thing for the patient; that our focus is patient-centered; and that our staff and physicians have excellent training,” said Dr. Klaus Thaler, chairman of the Department of Surgery.
The Joint Commission evaluates and accredits more than 20,000 health-care organizations and programs in the United States.
Norwalk Hospital has achieved this distinction as a "Lung Cancer Center of Excellence" through its integrated approach to providing world-class lung cancer care.
Certification requirements address ongoing specialized staff education and training, patient assessment, pain management, tumor board representation, dedicated navigator for lung cancer patients, effective measures to evaluate quality of care and patient/family satisfaction, smoking cessation program and psycho-social support for the patient.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in men and in women, with more people dying of lung cancer than of colon, breast, and prostate cancers combined, according to the American Cancer Society. The cancer society estimates that 87,260 men and 72,220 women will die of lung cancer in the U.S. this year.
"With Joint Commission certification, we are making a significant investment in quality on a day-to-day basis from the top down. Joint Commission accreditation provides us a framework to take our organization to the next level and helps create a culture of excellence,” says Dr. Eric Mazur, vice president and chief medical officer at Norwalk Hospital. “Achieving Joint Commission certification in lung cancer for our organization is a major step toward maintaining excellence and continually improving the care we provide.”
In early 2012, Norwalk Hospital became the first hospital in Connecticut to launch a lung cancer-screening program to help identify lung cancer in its earliest stages. The program was based upon the findings of the National Lung Screening Trial. For individuals who meet the criteria of the NLST study, Norwalk Hospital offers “low-dose” non-contrast CT -- which produces a three-dimensional image of the lungs -- for early detection.
Patients may be referred to the program by a physician or can be self-referred if they meet the NLST trial guidelines. Six patients have been diagnosed with early stage curable lung cancer through this program. At no additional cost, a personalized smoking cessation program is also offered by Norwalk Hospital to smokers who enroll in this screening program.
"We have intentionally made this a very low-cost program for the patient in order to encourage participation as it is the best hope for a cure for lung cancer," said Dr. Alan Richman, chairman of the Department of Radiology.
For more information about Norwalk Hospital's Lung Cancer Center of Excellence, call 203-852-2148 or visit www.norwalkhospital.org.
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