The Jewish Hospital – Mercy Health’s rectal cancer program has earned a three-year accreditation from the National Accreditation Program for Rectal Cancer (NAPRC), a quality program of the American College of Surgeons. It is the first accredited rectal cancer program in Cincinnati, the third in Ohio and the 40th in the nation.

“Our goal with every cancer patient is to provide them with exceptional care. Earning NAPRC accreditation tested and validated our ability to do so. I congratulate the surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, pathologists, radiologists, nurses and other members of our rectal cancer program who work together so seamlessly to give our patients the very best care,” said The Jewish Hospital President Pat Davis-Hagens. 

To achieve voluntary NAPRC accreditation, a rectal center must demonstrate compliance with the NAPRC standards addressing program management, clinical services and quality improvement for patients. Centers must establish a multidisciplinary rectal cancer team that includes clinical representatives from surgery, pathology, radiology, radiation oncology and medical oncology.

The Jewish Hospital’s program met standards addressing the clinical services that the rectal cancer program provides, including Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA testing), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and Computerized Tomography (CT) imaging for cancer staging which allow patients to start treatment within a defined timeframe. 

In addition to the most advanced MRI imaging capabilities, the program offers patients minimally invasive and robotic surgery options.

Rectal cancer programs accredited by the NAPRC undergo a site visit every three years and are also accredited by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer.  

Accreditation by the NAPRC is granted only to those programs that are committed to providing the best possible care to patients with rectal cancer. The NAPRC provides the structure and resources develop and operate a high-quality rectal center and accredited programs follow a model for organizing and managing a rectal center to ensure multidisciplinary, integrated, comprehensive rectal cancer services.