The Radiology Department at Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center (MAHHC) has received American College of Radiology (ACR) designation as a Lung Cancer Screening Center. The designation makes MAHHC Radiology notable “as a provider of safe, effective diagnostic care for those considered at high risk of lung cancer,” according to ACR. MAHHC is one of only three sites with this designation in a 25-mile radius, and one of nine within 50 miles.
MAHHC Radiology earned the designation by achieving ACR CT (Computed Tomography) Accreditation, and submitting clinical data including the department’s lung cancer screening protocol.
The designation represents the Hospital’s dedication to excellence in cancer care, says Dr. Joseph Perras, CEO and Chief Medical Officer at MAHHC. “We are proud to earn this distinction,” says Dr. Perras, “which signals to our community that Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center is recognized for our effectiveness in diagnosing lung cancer, a disease that affects more than 200,000 people a year in the United States. While lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among both men and women, making up nearly 25% of all cancer-related deaths, there is hope, especially with cancer detected at an early stage. That’s what we are here for.”
The American College of Radiology is a national organization founded in 1923 that represents nearly 40,000 radiologists, radiation oncologists, nuclear medicine physicians, and medical physicists in their mission to “serve patients and society by empowering members to advance the practice, science, and professions of radiological care.”
About Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center
Founded in 1933, Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center (MAHHC) is a not-for-profit community hospital network in Vermont including the critical access-designated Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Historic Homes of Runnemede, a senior residential care campus, in Windsor, as well as the Ottauquechee Health Center in Woodstock. A member of the Dartmouth Health system, MAHHC provides primary care and a comprehensive suite of specialty services, along with 25 inpatient beds, a therapeutic pool and an acclaimed, fully modernized 10-bed Acute Rehabilitation Center. Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center is dedicated to improving the lives of those it serves and is at the hub of a wide network of community resources that have partnered to cover gaps in services, and improve overall population health. One of the largest employers in the area, MAHHC acknowledges its employees as its greatest asset and has been recognized by the Governor's Office with an Excellence in Worksite Wellness award.
Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), is a recent recipient of Best Practice recognition by the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) for health care quality, and is recognized by the American Hospital Association (AHA) as one of the "Most Wired" hospitals for integration of technology to boost clinical performance. The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) has awarded MAHHC with Level 3 status, the highest level of medical home designation.
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire's only academic health system and the state's largest private employer, serves patients across northern New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,000 providers in almost every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH, as well as across its wide network of hospitals, clinics and care facilities. DHMC is consistently named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, one of only 51 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation, and the only such center in northern New England; Dartmouth Health Children's, which includes the state's only children's hospital and multiple locations around the region; member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene and New London, NH, and Windsor, VT; and Visiting Nurse and Hospice for Vermont and New Hampshire; and more than 24 clinics that provide ambulatory and specialty services across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its historical partnership with Dartmouth and the Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually, and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials recognized across the globe with Geisel and the White River Junction VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT. Dartmouth Health and its more than 13,000 employees are deeply committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in our communities, and to providing each of our patients with exceptional, personal care.