NORTHFIELD, IL –The Council of Medical Specialty Societies (CMSS), a coalition of 48 specialty societies representing more than 800,000 physicians across healthcare, has awarded the College of American Pathologists and 10 other member specialty societies grants of $100,000 each to promote diagnostic excellence across the field of medicine. This grant program will fund a diverse array of projects to support the development and dissemination of resources and programs to improve the timeliness, accuracy, safety, efficiency, patient-centeredness, and equity of diagnostic outcomes for patients in the United States. The awards include several projects that focus on three categories of conditions that are known to cause a disproportionate share of preventable harm from suboptimal diagnosis, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, and infection.
These awards are the result of a competitive grant program administered by CMSS and funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation in the amount of $1.26 million for medical specialty societies to support the development of resources and programs to promote the topic of diagnostic excellence for clinician audiences. In addition, The John A. Hartford Foundation, which promotes age-friendly care, is contributing half of the funding to support two of the selected awardee projects that focus on older adults. Proposals were reviewed by an external advisory committee comprised of a diverse group of national experts in diagnostic excellence and patient safety, clinician education, quality improvement, and research.
“The CAP is thrilled to receive the Council of Medical Specialty Societies/Moore Foundation grant to hear from patients how to make pathology reports more understandable,” said CAP President Emily E. Volk, MD, FCAP. “Often, pathology reports are the first experience that patients have with their cancer diagnosis, and a large percentage of patients do not understand them, according to previous studies. This incomplete understanding of cancer diagnoses may lead to additional anxiety and confusion for patients and caregivers. Therefore, the CAP will work to improve patient experience of first-time diagnosis of cancer as it relates to the pathology report. The CAP welcomes the opportunity from the Council of Medical Specialty Societies to help identify patient priorities in pathology reports and create recommendations around patient-centered pathology reports.”
In addition to the CAP, the CMSS announced the following funded grants:
- American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI) - Penicillin Allergy Testing Improving & Expanding Needed Treatment (PATIENT) Program
- American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) - Ophthalmology’s First Diagnostic Excellence Initiative
- American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) - Improving Diagnostic Excellence in Ambulatory Pediatrics: The Pediatric Quality Minute Series
- American College of Physicians (ACP) - Promoting Health Equity Through Excellence in Diagnostic Decision-Making
- American College of Surgeons (ACS)* - Diagnostic Excellence of Dementia and Cognitive Impairment in the Surgical Setting
- American Psychiatric Association (APA) - Promoting Diagnostic Excellence in Eating Disorders
- American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA)* - Perioperative Diagnostic Excellence for the Older Adult: An Educational Initiative
- American Thoracic Society (ATS) - Scaling Up the ICU-PAUSE for Diagnostic Excellence & Equity: A Cross-Societies Collaboration of Intensivists and Hospitalists to Improve Patient Safety at Transitions of Care
- College of American Pathologists (CAP) - Towards a Patient-Centered Pathology Report: A Mixed-Methods Diagnostic Excellence Study
- Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) - Using Education and Technology for Accurate and Rapid Cycle Sepsis Diagnoses: Building an Equitable and Quality-Based Diagnostic Excellence Program
- Society of General Internal Medicine (SGIM) - Crowdsourcing to Develop an Educational Intervention on the Diagnostic Process: Special Emphasis on Mitigating Racial Disparities in Diagnosis of Acute Coronary Syndrome
*Recipients of joint awards from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and The John A. Hartford Foundation
Medical specialty societies are well-positioned to educate and disseminate effective strategies that advance diagnostic excellence among their members through educational programs, including accredited CME, peer-reviewed journals, clinical guidelines, research, and clinical registries.
In addition to the selection and provision of grants to individual societies, CMSS will serve as a coordinating center to monitor and promote cross-specialty learning, improvement, collaboration, and identification of best practices in diagnostic excellence that can be shared with the broader medical community.
“Physicians look to their specialty societies for programs and resources that shape practice and drive improvement in safety, quality, and equity,” said Helen Burstin, MD, MPH, MACP, CEO of the Council of Medical Specialty Societies. “We are very pleased to support the awardees in engaging physicians in diagnostic excellence across the house of medicine.”
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About the College of American Pathologists
As the world’s largest organization of board-certified pathologists and leading provider of laboratory accreditation and proficiency testing programs, the College of American Pathologists (CAP) serves patients, pathologists, and the public by fostering and advocating excellence in the practice of pathology and laboratory medicine worldwide. As a 501(c)(6) membership organization, the CAP is the only entity representing pathologists with unrestricted advocacy capability and a political action committee, PathPAC. For more information, visit yourpathologist.org to watch pathologists at work and see the stories of the patients who trust them with their care. Read the CAP Annual Report.
About the Council of Medical Specialty Societies
The Council of Medical Specialty Societies is the national organization of specialty societies representing more than 800,000 physicians across the house of medicine. CMSS works to catalyze improvement across specialties through convening, collaborating, and collective action to address emerging issues that influence the future of healthcare and the patients we serve. For more information, visit www.cmss.org.
About the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation fosters path-breaking scientific discovery, environmental conservation, patient care improvements and preservation of the special character of the Bay Area. Visit www.Moore.org or follow @MooreFound.
About the John A. Hartford Foundation
The John A. Hartford Foundation, based in New York City, is a private, nonpartisan, national philanthropy dedicated to improving the care of older adults. The leader in the field of aging and health, the Foundation has three areas of emphasis: creating age-friendly health systems, supporting family caregivers and improving serious illness and end-of-life care. Visit www.johnahartford.org and follow @johnahartford.