PATIENT SURVEY RANKS START CANCER CENTER WITH LEADING CANCER CARE RATING
Updated: Mar 1, 2022
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, February 28, 2022 – The Community Oncology Alliance (COA) announced today that the Start Center for Cancer Care received among the highest satisfaction rating of all participating practices in the United States. Based upon ratings from patients with cancer the COA Patient Satisfaction Survey results reveal the practice achieved among the highest overall national rating as well as the highest rating nationally in the area of communications.
The Start Center for Cancer Care, which serves patients with cancer in the San Antonio area, performed strongly in all areas of the survey. The 2021 rankings of the patient experience as reported by actual patients exceeded statewide and national averages. The practice, which achieved this better than the national averages, is ranked as among the highest in the nation.
COA’s Patient Satisfaction Survey tracks cancer patient experience and satisfaction nationally, statewide, and by individual practice. With more than 192,000 individual patient surveys completed since launching in 2013, the COA Patient Satisfaction Survey solicits patient feedback about their care providers and all aspects of treatment, including communication, thoroughness of information given, and staff friendliness and interaction. It is based on the standardized Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) and uses questions specifically designed for cancer care.
“The Start Center for Cancer Care is proud of the high quality and personalized cancer care we provide our patients. The COA Survey allows us to provide continuously improving cancer care, and the Survey feedback enables every team member to monitor patient satisfaction, improve processes, and ensure an ongoing excellent cancer care experience for all patients,”
“The COA Patient Satisfaction Survey was developed to assist cancer care teams in learning from their patients regarding their care. The feedback is a guide to identify and implement a comprehensive oncology care delivery system that is focused on quality of care,” said Bo Gamble, COA Director of Quality and Value. “Feedback on patient and family experience is especially important to the cancer care team. All aspects of cancer care should be focused on the patient. This Survey assists the patient’s care team in the commitment to the highest quality cancer program through all aspects of the patient’s journey.”
Independent community oncology practices treat the majority of patients with cancer in America and are committed to improving oncology care for all. This includes leading the development and piloting of the recent Oncology Medical Home (OMH) model and participating in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center's (CMMI) and other quality reform initiatives to improve cancer care.
About The Start Center for Cancer Care: The mission of the START Center for Cancer Care is to provide the highest-quality care for people with cancer and help accelerate the development of new treatments to improve patients’ quality of life, giving them real hope against cancer. In pursuit of this mission, the START Center provides world-class care, with multiple convenient locations in San Antonio and across the globe. Comprised of a large team of caring, dedicated cancer doctors, the START Center combines excellent people, state-of-the-art capabilities, and the most advanced treatments available. The care team brings together multiple cancer-care specialties and modalities — surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy, integrative therapies, genetic testing of tumors — for thorough and efficient care. Learn more at: www.thestartcenter.com.
About the Community Oncology Alliance
The Community Oncology Alliance (COA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for community oncology practices and, most importantly, the patients they serve. COA is the only organization dedicated solely to community oncology where the majority of Americans with cancer are treated. The mission of COA is to ensure that patients with cancer receive quality, affordable, and accessible cancer care in their own communities. More than 1.5 million people in the United States are diagnosed with cancer each year and deaths from the disease have been steadily declining due to earlier detection, diagnosis, and treatment. Learn more about COA at communityoncology.org.