Cooley Dickinson Earns Accreditation in Radiation Oncology

NORTHAMPTON — Cooley Dickinson Hospital’s Radiation Oncology program has again earned accreditation by the American College of Radiology (ACR), a national organization serving more than 32,000 diagnostic and interventional radiologists, radiation oncologists, and nuclear medicine and medical physicists. The process involved submitting 60 medical records for quality-assurance review, as well as an on-site interview.

Accreditation by the ACR demonstrates that Cooley Dickinson’s program is exceeding quality-assurance protocols in the field and represents the highest level of quality and patient safety. The recognition is awarded to facilities meeting specific practice guidelines and technical standards developed by the ACR after a peer-reviewed evaluation by board-certified radiation oncologists and medical physicists.

“Cooley Dickinson Hospital offers state-of-the-art radiation therapy treatment, and with the ACR accreditation, we have independent validation of our compliance with national standards of excellence in the field of radiation therapy,” said Kelly Dillon, manager of Radiation Oncology.

As part of the ACR review, patient care and treatment, patient safety, personnel qualifications, adequacy of facility equipment, quality control, and quality-assurance programs are assessed. The findings are reported to the ACR Committee on Radiation Oncology Accreditation, which provides the Radiation Oncology program with a comprehensive report that can be used for continuous improvement.

This is the second consecutive time the department has earned a three-year accreditation. The Radiation Oncology program is part of Cooley Dickinson’s Cancer Care program. Radiation-oncology therapy is one phase of a multidisciplinary approach to treating a patient living with a cancer diagnosis.

Cooley Dickinson’s Radiation Oncology program is accredited through 2016. ACR is a national organization that focuses on medical imaging and radiation oncology and the delivery of comprehensive healthcare services.