ASCO Awarded CEO Cancer Gold Standard: Achievement Underscores Organization's Commitment To The Health And Well-Being Of Its Employees

Main Category: Cancer / Oncology
Article Date: 10 Sep 2009 - 18:00 PDT

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The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has earned CEO Cancer Gold Standard™ accreditation from the CEO Roundtable on Cancer, recognizing its commitment to reducing the cancer risk of its employees and their families through screenings, early detection, and healthy changes in lifestyle and in the workplace.

"We are very proud to gain this designation. It demonstrates an unwavering commitment to the health and well-being of our employees," said Allen S. Lichter, MD, CEO of ASCO. "As additional organizations become certified, we can make great strides in reducing cancer incidence and improving cancer treatment."

To earn CEO Cancer Gold Standard™ accreditation, an organization must take extensive actions in five key areas of health and wellness (tobacco use, diet and nutrition, physical activity, prevention and screening, and access to quality treatment and clinical trials) to prevent and treat cancer in the workplace. ASCO has met these challenges by:

- Establishing a tobacco-free worksite policy, in addition to offering tobacco cessation workplace initiatives and coverage of cessation counseling, therapies and medications in its employee health plans.

- Creating a wellness program that includes employee events (informational sessions, screenings, and demonstrations), a collection of information on wellness topics, local resources and discounts to nutritional counseling in its employee health plans.

- Providing a well-equipped, onsite fitness center for employees to use before and after work and during their lunch breaks, as well as a discount membership to a larger, local health club.

- Offering employee health benefit plans that eliminate cost as barrier to accessing preventive/screening tests and fostering an organizational culture that encourages age and gender-specific cancer screenings.

- Ensuring that its health benefit plans offer access to clinical trial participation and care at cancer centers approved by the Commission on Cancer or the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

"As the world's leading professional organization representing physicians who care for people with cancer, it is fitting that our Gold Standard certification demonstrates that ASCO also cares for its employees and their family members and supports efforts to reduce their cancer risk," said William C. Weldon, Chairman of the CEO Roundtable on Cancer and CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

The CEO Roundtable on Cancer was founded in 2001 when former President George H.W. Bush challenged a group of executives to "do something bold and venturesome about cancer within your own corporate families." The Roundtable responded by establishing the CEO Cancer Gold Standard™ in 2006. The most recent President's Cancer Panel report cites the Gold Standard as an example of the diverse efforts being used to address access and organizations problems in the health care system.

Source
ASCO