Members of the West Suburban Center for Cancer Care staff include (L-R): Cindy Rubic, RN; Julie Koch, RN; Isoken Koko, MD; Justyna Koscielniak; Amanda Raad, RN; Sharon O’Mara, RN; and Megan Moroney, RN.
The West Suburban Center for Cancer Care at the River Forest Medical Campus successfully passed a recent survey by the Commission on Cancer (CoC) and will continue its uninterrupted status as a fully accredited cancer program.
“The cancer program at West Suburban Medical Center in Oak Park, Illinois, is found to be an excellent program with dedicated staff throughout,” the lead surveyor wrote in the official CoC Accreditation Report. “They have dealt well with the challenges of Covid and other changes…some changes in staff, the change to the new 2020 standards and the sale of the medical center. Through all of this, the commitment to quality care shines through.”
Corky Bellile, chief administrative officer of the River Forest Medical Campus, proudly cited the survey findings that resulted in full accreditation with no deficits.
“These are the best results we’ve ever received since the program first received accreditation more than 20 years ago,” Bellile said. “I’m extremely proud of our entire team for this achievement. In particular, I want to recognize Justyna Koscielniak, manager of operations at River Forest, for her superb job day in and day out to ensure our compliance to standards, which led to our excellent preparation for the survey, and our ongoing quality patient care.”
Koscielniak herself cited several key contributors who played vital roles in the successful survey. Cindy Rubic was hired as a survivorship care coordinator but stepped in to become the nurse navigator and treatment nurse. Likewise, Julie Koch, manager of cancer research, took on cancer registry work because cancer follow-up is crucial to the accreditation. The pharmacy and the nursing teams also saw major turnover, at one point bringing a tenured pharmacist out of retirement.
“I am proud to work with this amazing team and the successful survey is well deserved,” Koscielniak said.