title: Quality of care in breast cancer centers: results of benchmarking by the German Cancer Society and German Society for Breast Diseases.
abstract: A total of 218 breast cancer centers, with 274 operating sites, have been certified since 2003 in accordance with the criteria set out by the German Cancer Society (Deutsche Krebsgesellschaft) and the German Society for Breast Diseases (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Senologie). Most of these centers are located in Germany, but centers in Austria, Switzerland, and Italy have also been certified. This paper presents the results for quality indicators (QIs) from 2009 to 2012, based on data from 195,342 primary breast cancer patients, in order to illustrate the development and progress of these centers. Descriptive results on interdisciplinary collaboration (6 QIs), guideline adherence (15 QIs), and specialist expertise (7 QIs) are reported over time. Fulfillment of the certification requirements was high and remained relatively stable over time, with the extent of variation between sites declining. Sites that do not reach the target values are asked to comment on the discrepancies, and their comments, as well as the QI results, are used by centers and auditors during an on-site auditing process and to constantly revise the QIs set out by the guideline and the certification commission.
authors.affiliation: German Cancer Society, Kuno-Fischer-Strasse 8, 14057 Berlin, Germany. Electronic address: kowalski@krebsgesellschaft.de.
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kowalski
authors.affiliation: OnkoZert, Certification Institute of the German Cancer Society, Gartenstrasse 24, 89231 Neu-Ulm, Germany. Electronic address: j.ferencz@onkozert.de.
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ferencz
authors.affiliation: University Hospital Tübingen, Calwerstrasse 7, 72076 Tübingen, Germany. Electronic address: Sara.Brucker@med.uni-tuebingen.de.
authors.forename: Sara Y
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Brucker
authors.affiliation: University Hospital Ulm, Prittwitzstrasse 43, 89075 Ulm, Germany. Electronic address: r.kreienberg@t-online.de.
authors.forename: Rolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kreienberg
authors.affiliation: German Cancer Society, Kuno-Fischer-Strasse 8, 14057 Berlin, Germany. Electronic address: wesselmann@krebsgesellschaft.de.
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wesselmann
mesh_terms: D019985:Benchmarking; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D002173:Cancer Care Facilities / Q000592:standards*; D002568:Certification; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D019983:Guideline Adherence / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000592:standards*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000592:standards; D012955:Societies, Medical; D013038:Specialization / Q000592:standards*
keywords: Benchmarking; Breast cancer center; Care quality; Certification; German Cancer Society