Oncologists, Nurses, Pharmacy Technicians, Pharmacists, and Other Professionals Attend 2nd Annual Forum in Dallas
The National Community Oncology Dispensing Association, Inc (NCODA) welcomed 165 oncology healthcare professionals representing more than 100 practices to its second annual NCODA Forum in Dallas, TX, March 1-3. A diverse group of professionals, including nurses, pharmacists, pharmacy techs, oncologists, administrators, and other industry leaders, came to the workshop-oriented meeting focused on the theme “Exploring Trends and Creating Value for Patients.”
Founded in 2015, NCODA is the leader in the medically integrated dispensing movement, strengthening oncology practices with dispensing services and elevating the case for better patient care through sharing of best practices and advocacy for direct dispensing of oral chemotherapies at the site of care.
“In a rapidly changing healthcare environment, providing consistent, personal, high quality care to cancer patients is imperative,” said Michael Reff, RPh, MBA, NCODA’s founder and Executive Director. “NCODA’s conferences provide a unique opportunity for oncology care practitioners to come together to learn, share, and participate in this effort.”
At the 2018 NCODA Forum, keynote speaker Congressman Doug Collins, U.S. Representative of Georgia’s Ninth Congressional District, provided an “Update on Medically Integrated Dispensary on the Federal Level”, noting his personal experience as a friend struggled with cancer treatment who was hampered getting the right treatments from qualified dispensaries. Collins supports legislation to ensure that cancer patients gain better access to oral cancer treatment, with a wide-range of payment options, by both community and national dispensing pharmacies.
Additional highlights of the meeting included four workshop sessions highlighting NCODA-developed practice management and patient care tools. The Cost Avoidance & Waste Tracker helps practices manage costs associated with drug dispensing. A triad of patient care tools – Positive Quality Interventions (PQI), Oral Chemotherapy Education Sheets, and Treatment Support Kits, all created by practicing NCODA members, are designed to improve access to information at the practice and patient levels, giving cancer patients better outcomes with fewer side effects from oral cancer drug treatments.
NCODA Executive Council members Yen Nguyen PharmD, Oncology Consultants, PA, and Robert Orzechowski, MBA, SPHR, Lancaster Cancer Center, LTD, offered a unique presentation Managing Through Chaos – Disaster Planning and Coping, highlighting Nguyen’s recent experience with the devastating impact of Hurricane Harvey at her Houston based practice in late August, 2017. Members also heard from a Pharmacy Technicians panel, who provided an inside view of the important support role they play in the Medically Integrated Dispensing Model.
More than twenty-five NCODA corporate sponsors, including over 100 industry representatives, participated in the Forum providing key contacts, offering treatment initiatives and presenting data to support better protocols for cancer care.
In support of NCODA’s ongoing commitment and collaboration with Be the Match, a national registry for bone marrow transplants, Forum attendees donated over $1,500 to provide critical funds for transplant patients. NCODA’s next professional educational program, the 2018 NCODA Summit, takes place October 25-27 in Denver, Colorado.
