The Sant Joan de Reus University Hospital has obtained accreditation from the European Organization of Cancer Institutes as a Cancer Center and becomes the third hospital in Catalonia with this seal. It is, moreover, the first outside the metropolitan area of Barcelona to achieve this recognition.
The distinction arrives after an audit of almost three years and places Reus in a singular position within the Catalan oncological network. The seal not only certifies assistance, but also opens the door to the creation of the Catalunya Sud Cancer Center alongside IRB Catalunya Sud and the Universitat Rovira i Virgili.
The OECI evaluated 345 points in nine areas of oncological treatment
The OECI evaluation reviews 345 points distributed across nine areas of cancer care. Among them are governance, patient involvement, multidisciplinary approach, and research.
The process is not exhausted with the granting of the seal. Accreditation requires an external evaluation to renew the recognition every five years.
Josep Gumà, director of the Institut d'Oncologia de la Catalunya Sud, explained that the audit has served to order and organize all areas of oncological care during a process that has lasted almost three years.
The seal brings clinical trials closer and reinforces the alliance with the URV
Gumà maintained that the recognition can make the center more attractive for pharmaceutical companies in conducting clinical trials. That route would allow patients to access medications between three and four years before their commercialization.
"To order and organize all areas of oncological care" - Josep Gumà, director of the Oncology Institute of Southern Catalonia
The accreditation also fits with the shared strategy between the Reus hospital, IRB Catalunya Sud and the Universitat Rovira i Virgili to establish the Catalunya Sud Cancer Center. The project links care, research and training in southern Catalonia.
Marta Milà, manager of the Camp de Tarragona Health Region, stated that the seal validates a human and person-centered vision. Milà added that this approach coincides with the policies of the Department of Health to promote shared decisions between doctor and patient.
From the URV, Fàtima Sabench, dean of the Faculty of Medicine, defended that quality teaching favors internationally competitive research, helps retain talent, and has repercussions on the university and hospital environment.
For his part, Anton Benet, manager of Salut Sant Joan Reus-Baix Camp, pointed out that the accreditation will allow the hospital to group together with other European centers to follow a common strategy.
The OECI demands that the Hospital Universitari Sant Joan de Reus undergo external evaluation again within five years to renew its accreditation as a Cancer Center.