Recognizes Excellence in Province on Anniversary
Cancer Care Nova Scotia introduced four excellence awards today, Jan. 21, to mark its 10th anniversary of making a difference in the lives of cancer patients and families.
Cancer Care Nova Scotia is calling for nominations to profile the hard work accomplished in the past 10 years, and to reinforce and recognize the collective efforts of the cancer system in Nova Scotia.
"The government of Nova Scotia is committed to enhancing cancer care, ensuring patients have access to care closer to home, and improving outcomes for Nova Scotians," said Health Minister Karen Casey. "Over the past decade, there has been remarkable change in the cancer care system. Congratulations to Cancer Care Nova Scotia for 10 years of facilitating excellence in cancer care and prevention for Nova Scotians."
"We are successful in what we do because we work in a health system with exceptional individuals and organizations," said Theresa Marie Underhill, Cancer Care Nova Scotia chief operating officer. "Our 10th anniversary is the perfect time to recognize those who work to ensure the best quality cancer care for patients and families in Nova Scotia."
During the past 10 years, Cancer Care Nova Scotia has led efforts, in partnership with district health authorities, to bring care closer to home for patients and families, enhance supports for patients and health professionals through Cancer Patient Navigation, improve the consistency of care through standards and guidelines, and increase the knowledge and skills of health professionals.
"As a cancer patient, I have first-hand experience of the compassion, dedication and commitment of health providers, many of whom have eased my way through a very trying and difficult situation," said Linda McAlpine.
"Many, many times people use the word angels to describe their care providers. Personally, I cannot praise highly enough the doctors, technicians, researchers, receptionists, cleaners and others who do what they do every day in a most extraordinary way. As a patient, I am very pleased that Cancer Care Nova Scotia is recognizing this commitment."
"As a family doctor and a clinical leader in my district, I have benefitted from the leadership and direction of Cancer Care Nova Scotia," said Dr. Shaun MacCormick, district chief of staff and medical director, Colchester East Hants Health Authority. "Our cancer system has vastly improved in the last 10 years. This is a credit to the leadership Cancer Care Nova Scotia has provided to our district and others, working with us to ensure we have the right information and supports to deliver care more efficiently and treat patients better."
Awards will be presented in four categories: Leadership Excellence, Pioneer Excellence, Innovation Excellence and Excellence in Patient Care. With the exception of the Excellence in Patient Care Award, all individual or group nominations will be considered, including, volunteers, activists, health professionals, health administrators and researchers. Nominations for the Excellence in Patient Care Award are limited to a health professional or team of health professionals who provide direct patient care.
Nomination information and details about qualifications for the awards are available on Cancer Care Nova Scotia's website at www.cancercare.ns.ca or by calling 1-866-599-2267. The deadline for nominations is April 17.
Among Cancer Care Nova Scotia's priorities is a greater focus on prevention and early detection. Programs in development include sun safety and colorectal cancer prevention. A great deal of work has occurred across the province to develop policies, education, infrastructure and programming to support Nova Scotians to make informed choices about their health.
"Our successes are a testament to the dedication and commitment of health professionals, to their patients, and the power of collaboration," said Ms. Underhill. "We've accomplished a lot, but our work is not done. Together we will build on our successes, anticipate challenges and identify solutions to address present and future needs."
Cancer Care Nova Scotia, a provincial program of the Department of Health, was created to facilitate quality cancer prevention and care for all Nova Scotians. Through Cancer Patient Navigation, health professional education, and standards and guideline development, Cancer Care Nova Scotia supports health professionals in providing patients with high quality care. Its work with other organizations raises awareness about the importance of healthy lifestyles to reduce cancer risk, and its screening programs educate Nova Scotians about healthy lifestyles and available testing like Pap tests for cervical cancer and the fecal immunochemical test (FIT) kit for colorectal cancer. The goal is to find cancer earlier and treat it better.