It gives certified FMH physicans access to MD Anderson Hospital’s resources in fighting cancer.
Frederick Memorial Hospital has a partner in its fight against cancer. Tom Kleinhanzl, the President and CEO of Frederick Regional Health System, the parent company of FMH, announced on Monday that the hospital has joined the MD Anderson Cancer Network. “M.D. Anderson is the nation’s leading cancer hospital,” he says. “A certified member of this network, Frederick Regional Health System, will use nationally recognized quality management, best practices, which are essential to more effective cancer treatment for our patients.”
Kleinhanzl says the Frederick Regional Health System is the first hospital in Maryland to join the M.D. Anderson Cancer Network.
The M.D. Anderson Cancer Hospital is located in Houston, Texas, and is considered the best cancer hospital in the country, according to US News and World Report.
With this affiliation, physicians at F.M.H. which have certifications will have access all of M.D. Anderson’s resources, according to Dr. William A. Murphy, Jr, the Board Chairman of the M.D. Anderson Physician Network; and patients don’t have to come to Houston for treatment. “When physicians and organizations, such as our physicians, your physicians, your organization and our organization, when they come together and collaborate, patients benefit,” he says.
This comes as Frederick Regional Health Systems is constructing a new cancer center. It will be known as the James M. Stockman Cancer Institute, and be located at the Rose Hill Plaza. A groundbreaking on the new facility was held earlier this week, and it’s scheduled to open in the summer of 2017. The cost is $21-million.
Dr. Mark Soberman, Medical Director of Oncology Service Line for F.M.H., says the hospital contacted MD Anderson itself. He says F.M.H. considered applying for other other partnerships, but decided MD Anderson was the best. “M.D. Anderson really brings to bear all of their clinical expertise and resources to a member,” he says. “Hopkins, University of Pittsburgh, there are a lot which have some degree of affiliation, but nothing on the scale of M.D. Anderson,” he says.
Being a member of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Network is not easy. Not all who apply receive membership, according to William Hyslop, President and CEO of M.D. Anderson Physicians Network. “We vet our prospective affiliates very, very carefully. And we’re very selective about who we choose to join our network,” he said.
Hyslop said MD Anderson 14 members which represent 34 hospitals, three partner organizations and four international organizations.
As part of Monday’s announcement, several F.M.H. physicians, including Dr. Soberman, were awarded pins signifying their certification by the M.D. Anderson Cancer Network.