Mercy Women's Center
Interdisciplinary Approach
“There’s a tongue-in-cheek ‘law’ of sociology that
states the effectiveness of a committee is inversely proportional to the
number of its members; but for breast cancer, the situation is different
because the committee members are not even in the same room. It’s a
recipe for chaos, and outcomes can end up being half-baked.” - Alan B.
Hollingsworth, M.D.
In 1989, Dr. Alan Hollingsworth became the first
board-certified physician (of any specialty) in the state of Oklahoma to
limit his practice to breast cancer, and in 1992 he became the Founding
Medical Director of Oklahoma’s first Multidisciplinary Breast Center.
“The Multi-specialty Roundtable was a big surprise
for all of us,” he reports. “The pathologists were surprised to learn
what the radiologists had been chasing with their needles, the
radiologists were caught off guard by the information that never made it
on the written pathology report, the surgeons were not aware of what the
radiation oncologists could do, the radiation oncologists had no idea
how they impacted plastic surgical reconstructions, and on and on. And
by adding regular reviews of the medical literature – (a ‘mere’ 500
articles are published each MONTH on breast cancer) – the seven
specialties fused…and patients benefited through a model of excellence.”
To that end, Mercy Woman's Center hosts a weekly
INTERDISCIPLINARY BREAST PRE-TREATMENT CONFERENCE that is approved for
Category 1 Continuing Medical Education.
Held at Mercy's new Cancer Resource Center, this
weekly conference includes representatives from six medical specialties
and allied health professionals who meet to discuss all patients newly
diagnosed with breast cancer at Mercy Woman's Center. Patients with
difficult diagnostic problems are presented as well. Mammography,
ultrasound, and MRI findings are seen through high- definition
videomicroscopy. A formal presentation each week helps everyone current
on the latest breast cancer information in the published literature.
|
November 10, 1992 – Noted breast pathologist David
L. Page, M.D. from Vanderbilt begins the “wallbreaking” ceremony for
Oklahoma’s first multidisciplinary breast cancer center, while Founding
Medical Director Alan B. Hollingsworth, M.D. prepares for the second
swing.
At the weekly
Interdisciplinary Conference, imaging studies are reviewed along with
pathology findings for all newly diagnosed breast cancer patients from
the Woman's Center, Complex or high-risk benign biopsies are reviewed as
well. |
