SCOPE -
Supporting Colorectal Cancer Outcomes
Through Participatory Enhancements
Did you know that New Jersey is among the states with below average rates of reported colorectal cancer (CRC) screening? Evidence indicates that early detection can significantly ease the impact of CRC. While primary care practices are uniquely situated to deliver this early detection, this potential has not been met, in large part due to the competing demands of delivering a full range of illness and wellness care.
Take advantage, with twenty-six other primary care practices, of this opportunity to manage your whole practice in shaping its future. Through an organizational assessment and quality improvement intervention, this study offers the intellectual stimulation of participating in groundbreaking primary care research and the opportunity to provide better care for your patients, and a more rewarding work environment for you and your staff.
Although the time investment for your practice to participate will be significant, the benefits could be substantial as well. This National Cancer Institute sponsored study represents an opportunity for you to participate in a systems approach to improving patient care. This approach involves an assessment of your practice followed by a collaborative intervention with you and your staff. Carried out by a trained facilitator, this assessment is utilized as a starting point for a learning team that interacts over six months through cycles of reflection and action on achieving measurable improvements in patient care systems and health outcomes. The learning team includes clinicians, staff, and a patient from the proactive and is guided by the facilitator.
In addition, two to three members of your practice will participate in two group learning sessions with five other practices. These learning sessions provide opportunities to share experiences and knowledge with peers from other practices, and to hear how others are adapting to a rapidly changing health care environment, including approaches for successfully delivering cancer screening within the context of a busy practice. The learning sessions are being held in collaboration with the American Cancer Society. With this collaboration, we will also be bringing in experts to speak on various cancer screening and prevention issues. Participants will receive CME credit for participating in the learning sessions.
Although practice performance for cancer screening and counseling will be used to test the effectiveness of the intervention, this approach seeks to develop the practice into a learning organization by improving the processes for information sharing, communication, and decision making. This approach expands on the more disease-oriented strategies advocated by many specialty societies. By improving the "health of your practice" we expect improvement in the quality of care for your patients.
The study I led by Benjamin Crabtree, Ph.D., and a nationally known researcher in primary care practice improvement. Dr. Crabtree is currently conducting a complementary NIH-funded study in 60 primary care practices from New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The team also includes John Scott, MD, PhD and John Orzano, MD, MPH, family physician researchers who each sharing twenty years of private practice experience to the project.