Posts Tagged ‘Elekta Impac Software’
National Cancer Registrars Association
National Cancer Registrars Association – Journal Of Registry Management • Fall 2009 • Volume 36 • Number 3
Validating Tumor Linkage Using the NAACCR Site Pairs Table
Deborah Bringman, MPHa; Jerri Linn Phillips, MA, CTRb;
[Elekta Impac Software's] – Judy Williams, RHIT, CTRc; John L. Young, Jr., DrPH, CTRd
Abstract: The objective of this study is to illustrate use of the Site Pairs Table developed by the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR) Record Linkage Work Group to validate tumor linkage in a central registry database and to identify potential cases with inaccurate tumor linkage. Central registries often receive reports for patients with
multiple tumors, and they receive multiple reports from different sources for the same tumor. Tumor site pairs (pairs of unique tumors for patients with multiple tumors) ought not refer to the same tumor as represented in the Site Pairs Table. Likewise, abstract pairs (pairs of abstracts relating to the same tumor) ought to be identified during the tumor linkage process as belonging to the same tumor.
Three central cancer registries represented on the work group contributed data to the study. The data included cases diagnosed 1992–2003 and represented 143,288 patients with multiple tumors and 280,227 tumors with multiple abstracts. Totals of 181,118 tumor site pairs and 391,670 abstract site pairs were generated from the data and compared to the Site Pairs Table. Of the abstract site pairs 381,389 (97.4%) were found in the Site Pairs Table. One registry reviewed its portion of the 2.6% not found in the table and determined 12% of the cases were incorrectly linked and should change from one tumor to two tumors. Of the tumor site pairs, 144,793 (80%) were not found in the Site Pairs Table. Further evaluation of the remaining 20% by paired site and laterality, histology and timing showed 19.3% were considered unique tumors and 0.7% were identified as potential cases with inaccurate tumor linkage. Two registries reviewed their portion of these cases. One registry changed two tumors to one tumor on 44% of the cases they reviewed. The other registry changed two tumors to one tumor on 53% of the cases they reviewed. Analyzing site pairs within the registry database using the Site Pairs Table assists in identifying inaccurate tumor linkages as was shown in this study.
To Read the entire publication, please continue to http://www.ncra-usa.org/i4a/pages/Index.cfm?pageID=3578
Elekta Impac Software – Cancer Registry
Top 10 Cancers
With more than 2.2 million cases collected from 1985 to present, NODA offers a broad range of data, including detailed tumor descriptions, treatments (radiation, hormonal, chemotherapy, biological and surgical), and survival outcomes in both outpatient and inpatient settings. NODA also is a pre-validated source of timely, longitudinal cancer data for population-based research.
“Fast and easy to use, we use the NODA, for simplified access to cancer demographics,” says Diane Skinner, CTR Cancer Data Manager, Gibbs Regional Cancer Center. “We find the NODA support staff to be very helpful in providing useful survival analyses that are based on comparative data, as well as offering lung cancer and breast cancer survival statistics on a routine basis.”
For additional information on how participation can help your oncology practice, visit www.impac.com/noda.
ASCO 2009 Meeting
Impac Software Selects 2009 Cancer Registrar of the Year - Deanna Derdelinghen
Recognized for her efforts to promote growth and excellent patient care, Deanna Derdelinghen oversees all aspects of the ACoS, CoC accreditation process, management of related cancer program activities and Stamford’s tumor registry. She also helps with grants and proposals for oncology-related continuing education programs, as well as supports physicians with cancer staging compliance and evidence-based treatment planning tools used to track and measure oncology patient care.
“I’m honored my peers nominated me, fortunate for the opportunities I’ve been given and blessed to be a part of such a fine organization,” says Deanna Derdelinghen. “As Cancer Program Manager, I’m involved in many cancer program activities. This affords me the opportunity to participate in, as well as see first-hand all the wonderful things being done to support our patients.”
Described by coworkers as “an individual who contributes greatly to the battle against cancer,” Deanna’s meticulous record keeping and attention to detail helped Stamford become first in the nation to be named a National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers facility from the American College of Surgeons (ACoS). In addition, Deanna’s efforts also enabled the hospital to achieve commendation status from the ACoS/Commission on Cancer (CoC), as well as receive eight out of nine possible commendations from their last two ACoS Cancer Program surveys.
“Simply the best, Deanna is a great asset to our hospital and community,” says Frank Masino, M.D. and Medical Director of Cancer Services at Stamford Hospital. “Without Deanna’s great intelligence, diligence and passion, our program would not have achieved the status it has in our community. The hospital’s accreditations, resulting largely from Deanna’s guidance, also helps assure patients that our program is being held to the highest standards.”
For latest cancer registry news from Impac Software, visit impac.com/registry.
The proliferation of image data in radiation therapy has created a dramatic transformation in workflow and in OIMS architecture.
By: Cristen C. Bolan – Full Article Here
Imaging is playing an increasingly valuable role in all areas of radiation therapy as new image-guided techniques are used for tumor localization, treatment planning and verification of treatment plans. However, the resulting large volumes of image data are inundating radiation oncology information systems (OIMS), which are not equipped to efficiently store and retrieve data at this capacity.
“Radiation oncology is undergoing a rapid and dramatic workflow transformation,” said Erwin Nell, product manager for Varian’s OncoView Image Management and Storage Solution. “Within 3-5 years, the average oncology department will experience exponential growth in the size, complexity and volume of images generated. The increase is due, in part, to the success of image-guided oncology programs, which generate new images at each step in the treatment process — diagnosis, staging, planning, verification, setup, response and follow-up. Storing, managing and providing access to these images long-term will become critical as the giga- and terabyte needs of today expand to the petabyte requirements of the future.”
In response to this crisis, OIMS developers are restructuring their systems, offering more efficient data management and archive storage solutions. Radiation oncologists are hopeful that these new systems will iron out their workflow rifts.
Built-in Bottlenecks
Data management in radiation oncology was built piece-by-piece, trapping proprietary systems, images and other clinical data in disparate silos and creating bottlenecks in the workflow. As a patient passes through the treatment process, clinicians have had to struggle to retrieve priors and call up currents in an expeditious way.
“In the past, there were a lot of silos created,” explained David Nikolai, business marketing manager for Impac Software, The Elekta Group. “Adding to this problem is the fact that many PACS available for managing images and data were designed for radiology and the radiology workflow, not the more dynamic and adaptive image-guided RT workflow.”
The Pathology department at Palo Alto Medical Foundation has been working with the PowerPath anatomic pathology system for nearly 13 years. From the initial implementation of the product in the early 1990s, helping to develop standard reports that are used today, beta testing PowerPath 2000, and recently upgrading to version 8.2, the site has experienced all of the ups and downs. As Deanna Iverson, pathology manager, explains,
“PowerPath has held its own through all of the company transitions and acquisitions. We’ve never jumped ship because we value the product.”
Since the acquisition of the product by Impac Software in December 2003, PowerPath has been part of Impac Software’s complete solution for managing the spectrum of cancer care. Iverson observes that,
“being a part of Impac Software has helped us tremendously because we can call on resources of the larger company, particularly around the issue of interfaces. Even though it may be a different workflow, there is infrastructure to support what we need and it’s all interrelated to cancer therapy.”
Iverson also explains that she feels excited by Impac Software’s vision for informatics and believes that will help improve PowerPath’s ability to deliver even more data.
“It makes me nuts that I can’t get some data out of the system. A big plus about being part of Impac Software is that the company has a vision for informatics. I believe that improvements in this area are more likely to happen because development can be applied to different divisions,”
Iverson says.
As part of the fallout of multiple management teams over the past five years, Iverson observed a significant decline in customer service and stagnated product development – noting that now the situation has improved.
“I definitely see a change in Impac Software seeking input from the customer. When the company was smaller in the early 1990s, there was a desire to know the customer. I appreciated people coming out to see the workflow at that time. This value has reemerged since Impac Software acquired PowerPath; there has been a real push to gather customer input,”
Iverson explains. Ginny Rankin, administrative coordinator, says that she has also experienced improvements in technical support.
“We have had a long-term working relationship with the company and have appreciated, in the past year, the prompt response and resolution for our technical support issues. The biggest change I’ve seen with Impac Software has been the level of professionalism and organization within the technical support team.”
Powerpath users conference
Impac Software has been selected to present at the EHR Lab during the ASCO Annual Meeting, May 29 – June 2, at the Orange County Convention Center, in Orlando. Chosen according to criteria developed by ASCOs EHR Workgroup, 2009 is the third consecutive year Impac Software has been chosen.
A hands-on opportunity for oncologists, administrators, nurses and other members of the oncology care team to test and experiment with various EHR products, Impac will demonstrate its oncology EHR, MOSAIQ®, and how its implementation can help provide better overall communication, process efficiency and more efficient patient care.
We are pleased to again be selected to show our oncology specific functionality to this year‚ ASCO EHR lab attendees”, says Dave Eggert, Medical Oncology Business Marketing Manager for Impac Software. “With all of the buzz surrounding EMR implementation as part of the stimulus package, it‚ even more important to make an informed decision about an EMR choice.”‘
The EHR Lab will be located on the exhibit hall floor within the Orange County Convention Center during the following hours:
Sunday, May 31, 2009, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Monday, June 1, 2009, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
For additional information regarding ASCOs EHR Lab, visit: asco.org/ehr. For full details and a demonstration of MOSAIQ, visit Impac Software booth #3401 at ASCO.
Tim Dolan, 2009 Lab Professional of the Year
Honoring outstanding laboratory professionals who have made valuable contributions to the success of their labs, as well as the profession, the annual award is part of Impac Software’s celebration of National Medical Laboratory Professionals Week, April 19-25, 2009.
Recognized for his 18 years of exceptional service to Roswell Park Cancer Institute Dolan managed the implementation of Impac Software’s laboratory information system, PowerPath®, as well as led the department through three subsequent version upgrades, including the center’s recent upgrade to PowerPath 9.3.
Coworker and Roswell Park laboratory employee, Jennifer Fairbairn nominated Dolan for the award: “A fair and disciplined manager, Tim has improved laboratory operations from billing to process improvement. Most recently, his oversight of the department’s billing process resulted in improved revenue – lauding his program as the best billing practice in the institute!”
“Having been nominated by one of my team members is awesome and to be selected as the 2009 Laboratory Professional of the Year is truly an honor,” says Dolan. “This award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of my team as much as it is to the individual accomplishments that I have achieved.”
“Rewarding someone that has been nominated by colleagues is especially gratifying,” adds George Rugg, SVP and General Manager of Impac Software’s Laboratory Information Systems Business Unit. “Impac Software is pleased to recognize Tim Dolan as the 2009 Impac Software Laboratory Professional of the Year.”
In an effort to standardize care plans, dosages, treatments and processes to control error risk and cost, Iowa Blood and Cancer Care (IBACC), an 16-chair medical oncology treatment center located in Cedar Rapids (Iowa, USA), implemented Impac Software. Enabling physicians to work off the same template and ensure all drugs are mixed and administered consistently, IBACC has been able to prove efficiencies to insurance companies and negotiate better contracts.
Since its founding in June 2001, the center has grown to incorporate a PET CT, lab and pharmacy. Its team of five physicians, four nurse practitioners and 36 staff members daily sees an average of 100-120 patients.
Iowa Blood & Cancer Care, P.L.C.
“Our mission is to bring hope to life, which philosophically to us means a very patient-focused system that fosters hope and healing in each person,” says Sylvia Anspach, Advanced Practice Nurse at IBACC. “We maintain that philosophy not only as a clinical entity, but as a business as well. If we do what is right for the patient, first and foremost, all else will follow. As a result, all decisions are made with the patient at the center.”
- Largest Neurosurgical Center in Russia Acquires Elekta’s Leksell Gamma Knife Perfexion February 6, 2012Russia’s first Leksell Gamma Knife® Perfexion™ system has found a home at the renowned N.N. Burdenko Neurosurgical Institute, just a five-minute car ride from Moscow’s Red Square. On June 2, 2011, a 59-year-old woman was the first Perfexion patient, receiving Gamma Knife® radiosurgery to treat tumor tissue that remained following open surgery. Now, eight mon […]
- Largest Neurosurgical Center in Russia Acquires Elekta’s Leksell Gamma Knife Perfexion February 6, 2012N.N. Burdenko Neurosurgical Institute improves treatment of patients with multiple metastasesRead more... […]
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- Mosaiq® - Electronic Medical Records January 31, 2012Mannheim26-27 November - 2012 […]
- IMRT / VMAT January 31, 2012Mannheim22-23 November - 2012 […]
- IGRT January 31, 2012Amsterdam16-17 November - 2012 […]
- SBRT January 31, 2012Wake Forest, North Carolina18-19 October - 2012 […]
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- IMRT / VMAT January 31, 2012Mannheim21-22 June - 2012 […]
- Mosaiq® - Electronic Medical Records January 31, 2012Mannheim18-19 June - 2012 […]