The Alliance for Quality Psychosocial Cancer Care: An Innovative Model for Disseminating and Improving Implementation of National Quality Care Recommendations Ruth McCorkle, Rebecca Kirch, Kim Thiboldeaux, Julie Taylor and Mark Gorman J Natl Compr Canc Netw 2014;12:947-951 . All rights reserved. from 00.000.000.0 Copyright © 2014 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. All rights reserved. Print ISSN: 1540-1405. Online ISSN: 1540-1413. JNCCN – The Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network is published by Harborside Press, 37 Main Street, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724 on November 2, 2014 Online article http://www.jnccn.org/content/12/6/947.full by guest Subscriptions Information about subscribing to JNCCN – The Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network is online at http://www.jnccn.org/site/subscriptions/ jnccn.org Permissions For information about photocopying, republishing, reprinting, or adapting material, please go online to http://www.NCCN.org/permissions Downloaded from Copyright © 2014 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network NCCN.org 947 Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network The Last Word The Alliance for Quality Psychosocial Cancer Care: An Innovative Model for Disseminating and Improving Implementation of National Quality Care Recommendations Ruth McCorkle, PhD; Rebecca Kirch, JD; Kim Thiboldeaux; Julie Taylor; and Mark Gorman In 2008, the Cancer Support Community and the American Psychosocial Oncology Society joined forces to bring together key professional and advocacy stakeholders from the cancer and mental health communities to form the Alliance for Quality Ruth McCorkle, PhD Psychosocial Cancer Care. The Alliance was formed in response to the 2007 Institute Ruth McCorkle, PhD, is the first Florence Schorske Wald Professor of Medicine (IOM) report, Cancer Care for the Whole Patient: Meeting Psychosocial at Yale School of Nursing and a 1 Health Needs, and its specific emphasis on implementing a standard for quality cancer Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health care that includes providing appropriate psychosocial health services by: . All rights reserved. at Yale School of Medicine. She from 00.000.000.0 • Facilitating effective communication between patients and care providers; also has served as the program • Identifying each patient’s psychosocial health needs; and leader for Cancer Control at • Designing and implementing a plan that links the patient with needed the Yale Comprehensive Cancer Center (YCCC) and is currently psychosocial services, coordinates biomedical and psychosocial care, engages the Director of the Psychosocial and supports patients in managing their illness and health and in systematically Oncology Research Program at following up on, reevaluating, and adjusting plans. Smilow Cancer Hospital of YCCC. Dr. McCorkle received a bachelor’s The report was the result of funding appropriated to the Department of Health degree in nursing from the on November 2, 2014 and Human Services (HHS) to study (1) the capacity of the current mental health University of Maryland, a master’s in medical-surgical nursing from and oncology provider system to deliver psychosocial services to individuals with the University of Iowa, and a cancer and their family members; (2) available training programs for professionals doctorate in mass communication, by guest providing psychosocial and mental health services; and (3) the existing barriers to from the University of Iowa’s access to cancer-related mental health services. The IOM report highlights the critical School of Journalism. need to improve awareness among clinicians and consumers about the importance Some of Dr. McCorkle’s many honors include a Distinguished jnccn.org of integrating psychosocial care in oncology treatment, to identify national and Merit Award from the community resources currently available supporting delivery of this integrated quality International Society of Nurses care, and to expand or enhance existing programs and services to meet the social and in Cancer Care, a Distinguished Research Award from the emotional needs of all people facing cancer and its aftermath. Oncology Nursing Society, and The Alliance was formed to give life to the report’s recommendations on the being named the Nurse Scientist frontlines of practice, pulling together key stakeholder organizations and others with a of the Year by the Council of Nurse Researchers of the American Downloaded from shared interest in advancing integration of psychosocial care into the medical standard Nurses Association. She received Copyright © 2014 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network of care for people with cancer. The Alliance now includes more than 30 member the Bernard Fox Research Award organizations (Table 1), reflecting a diverse cross-section of groups and individuals for outstanding contribution to representing community services, clinical care providers, patient advocates, and the field of Psychooncology and the Jimmie Holland award for researchers. Together, the Alliance membership offers a collective, collaborative voice distinguished leadership from the and information-sharing forum for coordinating plans and taking strategic action. American Psychosocial Oncology As the Alliance was being formed, its founders worked to carefully define its Society. A prolific writer, her work appears in many professional unique role (Table 2) with the goal of retaining focus while avoiding duplication journals in the United States and of efforts among member organizations (Table 3). Carol Alter, MD, Director abroad. of Psychosomatic Medicine, Policy and Outreach, at Georgetown University Hospital, played a key leadership role in the formation of the Alliance. Dr. Alter was instrumental in bringing together a steering committee to clarify the Alliance’s The ideas and viewpoints purpose and objectives, formulate committees to carry out its work, and oversee its expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not initial activities. Through her leadership, the Alliance evolved quickly into its current necessarily represent any policy, structure and role as a convener of organizations committed to raising awareness about position, or program of NCCN. © JNCCN—Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network | Volume 12 Number 6 | June 2014 948 The Last Word McCorkle et al Table 1 Alliance for Quality Psychosocial Cancer Care Member Organizations Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine Dana-Farber Cancer Institute American Academy of Pain Management International Psycho-oncology Society American Cancer Society Kidney Cancer Association American Childhood Cancer Organization The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society American Psychiatric Association The LIVESTRONG Foundation American Psychosocial Oncology Society Lung Cancer Alliance American Psychosomatic Society National Association of Social Workers American Society of Clinical Oncology National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship American Society for Radiation Oncology Free to Breathe (formerly National Lung Cancer Partnership) Association of Community Cancer Centers Rebecca Kirch, JD National Patient Advocate Foundation Association of Oncology Social Work Rebecca Kirch, JD, is the American Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center Association of Pediatric Oncology Social Cancer Society’s Director of of Northwestern University Workers Quality of Life & Survivorship. Society of Behavioral Medicine Based in Washington, DC, she CancerCare UC Irvine Health Chao Family Comprehensive provides strategic direction and Cancer Legal Resource Center Cancer Center . All rights reserved. coordination for the Society’s Cancer Support Community from 00.000.000.0 national agenda addressing University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center Center for Advancing Health quality care and quality of life Yale Cancer Center issues for all adults and children Center for Communication in Medicine facing cancer and its aftermath. Through research, programs, and advocacy, these initiatives include the importance of psychosocial care and the importance of integrating these services a suite of policies and practices as a standard of quality cancer care. Because of Dr. Alter’s efforts, Alliance leadership that integrate palliative care for managing pain, symptoms, evolved to its current structure, led by cochairs Ruth McCorkle, PhD, American and stress; psychosocial care Psychosocial Oncology Society; Kim Thiboldeaux, Cancer Support Community; on November 2, 2014 for emotional support; and and Mark Gorman, National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship. Rebecca Kirch, JD, impairment-driven rehabilitation American Cancer Society, joined as cochair in 2012, on Mr. Gorman’s retirement. for addressing disability and by guest enhancing person-centered These cochairs represent the key constituencies of Alliance member organizations— and goal-directed clinical research, community services, clinical care, and advocacy. Alliance initiatives are communication skills. Ms. Kirch’s undertaken by 3 committees: Best Practices, Education and Awareness, and Public efforts were honored with the Policy and Advocacy (Table 4). jnccn.org Center to Advance Palliative Care’s 2013 Innovation Award The Alliance has defined its role as: and a 2011 Presidential Citation • Serving as a convener and facilitator across stakeholder members to create and sustain to the Society from the American momentum for activities implementing recommendations from the IOM report; Academy of Hospice & Palliative Medicine. Her achievements in • Organizing