Fayette County leaders joined the staff of Piedmont Fayette Hospital at a reception last week commemorating the hospital’s new affiliation with the MD Anderson Cancer Network, a program of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. More than 100 people heard remarks from the hospital’s chief executive officer, medical director and executive director of patient services as well as from the vice president of strategy and business development from MD Anderson.
MD Anderson has ranked number one in cancer care in the “Best Hospitals” survey published by U.S. News and World Report for 10 of the past 12 years. MD Anderson’s best practices and protocols will be implemented at Piedmont Atlanta and Piedmont Fayette hospitals. In the future, Piedmont Henry and Piedmont Newnan hospitals are expected to become MD Anderson Cancer Network certified members as well.
Local hospital officials have pointed out that having an MD Anderson-certified hospital in Fayette County means that local residents will not have to be away from home while receiving cancer care. As many as 700 patients traveled from Georgia to Houston during a 12-month period in 2012-2013, officials have reported.
Information changes rapidly in the field of oncology, according to Piedmont Fayette medical director Jonathan Bender.
“Keeping up with every sub-specialty in oncology can be difficult but MD Anderson has perfected this,” Bender said recently, noting that many of their oncologists work with only one disease.
“I dont think anyone else in the world has this kind of experience,” Bender said.
MD Anderson scientists and researchers create new techniques and therapies which make the affiliation even more desirable, Bender also noted.
