Leading Oncology Professional Societies Launch CancerLinQ® Ambassadors Program

ALEXANDRIA, VA—March, 8, 2017—CancerLinQ LLC, a wholly-owned nonprofit subsidiary of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), and the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) announced today the formation of the CancerLinQ^® Ambassadors Program. This new collaboration is a national practice engagement initiative that will provide on-the-ground support and guidance to CancerLinQ^® participating practices on a regional basis. 

 

“As CancerLinQ continues to engage the community, the need to bring together physicians, nurses and the various professionals of the care team together to leverage our respective strengths is increasingly evident,” said Kevin Fitzpatrick, Chief Executive Officer of CancerLinQ LLC. “We are grateful to work with ONS to build on this commitment to care and enable every practice to get the most out of their use of the CancerLinQ^® platform to ultimately benefit patients.”

 

Extending the reach and overall programmatic impact, oncology nurses will play a critical role in CancerLinQ’s successful adoption in all practice settings. With over 39,000 members and expertise in developing and implementing educational and oncology nurse consulting programs, ONS is well positioned to enhance the value add of CancerLinQ^® through nurse involvement in a way that ultimately benefits cancer patients.

 

“Nurses play a critical role in not only the delivery of patient care, but also ensuring that information and data is utilized correctly for quality improvement,” said Brenda Nevidjon, PhD, RN, AOCN^®, FAAN, Chief Executive Officer of ONS. “This collaboration with CancerLinQ allows nurses, physicians, and the entire health care team to better engage in practice and use technology to improve efficiency and provide the best care possible.”

 

The CancerLinQ^® Ambassadors Program will launch in selected regions of the US with the long-term goal of expanding nationwide. ONS will recruit credentialed nurses from its membership with experience in quality improvement, informatics and technology to provide this guidance in the field. Ambassadors will visit practices on a regularly scheduled basis to answer questions and perform trainings for oncologists, oncology nurses and their practice staff, bringing back on-the-ground observations and feedback to augment CancerLinQ services and overall user experience. In addition, Ambassadors will work with practices to optimize the quality of the data they are sharing with CancerLinQ, disseminate best practices and provide coaching on how to integrate the platform into their workflow within their care team model. 

 

The collaboration with ONS is one of many that CancerLinQ is pursuing with a coalition of partners and thought leaders, including government agencies, medical specialty societies and life sciences companies. The American Society of Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) and Cancer Informatics for Cancer Centers (CI4CC) have recently joined forces with CancerLinQ and in November, AstraZeneca became a founding enterprise partner with CancerLinQ Discovery™. Through all these efforts, CancerLinQ hopes to receive guidance and gain insights that can improve quality and efficiency of the cancer care delivery system.

 

CancerLinQ is a powerful database—created by oncologists for oncologists—made up of vast amounts of usable, searchable, real-world cancer information. This big data initiative will allow users to see trends among millions of patients by analyzing cancer patient medical records, uncovering patterns that can improve patient care, and enabling the entire health care team to compare their care against that of their peers and recommended guidelines. 

 

CancerLinQ is supported in part through the Conquer Cancer Foundation, whose generous donors have helped make the system possible. Major supporters include Amgen; Astellas; AstraZeneca; Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Cancer Treatment Centers of America^®; Chan Soon-Shiong Family Foundation; Genentech BioOncology™; HELSINN; Janssen Oncology; Lilly; Raj Mantena, RPh; Novartis Oncology; Pfizer Oncology; Thomas G. Roberts, Jr., MD, and Susan M. DaSilva; and Susan G. Komen^®.

 

CancerLinQ^® is a project of CancerLinQ LLC. For more information on how to participate or partner with CancerLinQ, please visit CancerLinQ.org.

 

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About ASCO

Founded in 1964, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO^®) is committed to making a world of difference in cancer care. As the world’s leading organization of its kind, ASCO represents more than 40,000 oncology professionals who care for people living with cancer. Through research, education, and promotion of the highest-quality patient care, ASCO works to conquer cancer and create a world where cancer is prevented or cured, and every survivor is healthy. ASCO is supported by its affiliate organization, the Conquer Cancer Foundation. Learn more at www.ASCO.org, explore patient education resources at www.Cancer.Net, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.

 

About CancerLinQ LLC

CancerLinQ LLC is a subsidiary of American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. established for the development and operation of the CancerLinQ^® initiative. CancerLinQ is a health information technology platform aimed at enhancing and improving the understanding and treatment of cancer. To learn more, visit www.cancerlinq.org.

 

About ONS

ONS is a professional association of more than 39,000 members committed to promoting excellence in oncology nursing and the transformation of cancer care. Since 1975, ONS has provided a professional community for oncology nurses, developed evidence-based education programs and treatment information, and advocated for patient care, all in an effort to improve quality of life and outcomes for patients with cancer and their families. Learn more at www.ons.org.