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The Queen’s Medical Center’s Breast Center is Granted National Recognition

HONOLULU — The Queen’s Medical Center Breast Center has been granted national accreditation by The National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC). This is the highest level of recognition possible for a Breast Center program.

The Queen’s Medical Center is the first and only program in Hawaii to receive this designation. Only 50 centers in 23 states have achieved this designation as centers that offer the highest level of breast cancer care. There are over 5,700 registered hospitals in the United States, and less than 1% of these hospitals have received this accreditation.

“The Queen’s Medical Center is very proud of this achievement,” said Art Ushijima, President of The Queen’s Medical Center. “The American Cancer Society estimates that there would be 184,450 patients diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in the United States in 2008. In addition, hundreds of thousands of women who will deal with benign breast disease this year will require medical evaluation for treatment options. This accreditation recognizes our hard working healthcare professionals who offer a full spectrum of care to our patients with breast disease.”

Accreditation by the NAPBC is only given to centers that have voluntarily committed to provide the highest level of quality breast care and that undergo a rigorous evaluation process and review of their performance. During the survey process, the center must demonstrate compliance with standards established by the NAPBC for treating women who are diagnosed with the full spectrum of breast disease. The standards include proficiency in the areas of: center leadership, clinical management, patient navigation, research, community outreach, professional education, and quality improvement.

“We are committed to providing the highest quality evaluation and management of our patients with breast disease,” said Darlena Chadwick, RN, Queen’s Vice President for Patient Care.

The NAPBC is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to the improvement of the quality of care and monitoring of patients with diseases of the breast. This mission is pursued through standard-setting, scientific validation, and patient and professional education. Its board membership includes professionals from 15 national organizations that reflect the full spectrum of breast care.

“This accreditation demonstrates our firm commitment to offer our patients every significant advantage in their battle against breast disease,” said Kathleen Mah, M.D., Chief of General Surgery and Chair of the Breast Program Leadership.

The Breast Center is contained within The Women’s Health Center on the campus of The Queen’s Medical Center. The center is founded on the belief that breast cancer patients are best treated with a multi-disciplinary team that includes surgeons, medical oncologists, radiologists, radiation oncologists and other healthcare specialists.

The Breast Center includes a Breast Navigator, an interdisciplinary breast conference, breast cancer support groups, genetic counselors, a psychiatrist, physical therapists and a comprehensive Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Program (BCCCP).

The center collaborates closely with the Queen’s Cancer Center and maintains strong community relationships with the American Cancer Society, Hawaii Affiliate Susan G. Komen for the Cure and local organizations such as Imi Hale, the Native Hawaiian cancer network.

“The fact that we have been approved as one of the first NAPBC programs in the country reflects the excellence in breast health at The Queen’s Medical Center,” said Diane Thompson, M.D., Medical Director of The Women’s Health Center. “Receiving care at a NAPBC-accredited center ensures that a patient will have access to comprehensive care, a multidisciplinary team approach, information about ongoing clinical trials and new treatment options, and most importantly, quality breast care close to home.”

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The Queen’s Medical Center is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation, acute care medical facility accredited by The Joint Commission. The facility houses 505 acute beds and 28 sub-acute beds and is widely known for its programs in cancer, cardiovascular disease, neuroscience, orthopaedics, surgery, emergency medicine and trauma, and behavioral medicine. Queen’s is home to a number of residency programs offered in conjunction with the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii.    Queen’s has achieved Magnet® status – the highest institutional honor for hospital excellence – from the American Nurses Credentialing Center. Magnet recognition is held by less than five percent of hospitals in the United States. Queen’s is the first hospital in Hawai‘i to achieve Magnet status.