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NCCN Awarded Accreditation by the ACPE to Provide Continuing Education Credits to Pharmacists
NCCN has been approved to provide continuing education credits to pharmacists by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE). NCCN offers web-based and live programs free of charge to educate pharmacists on treatment advancements in oncology.
FORT WASHINGTON, PA — The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) recently received continuing education accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) through June 2013. The approval is vital to oncology pharmacists in need of reliable, up-to-date, and evidence-based educational programs based on the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines™).
NCCN has long recognized the importance of the oncology pharmacist as a member of the multidisciplinary treatment team for people with cancer. Pharmacists play an important role in the clinical decision-making process, both at the individual patient level and the drug use policy level.
Pharmacists dispensing chemotherapy require the clinical knowledge and expertise to effectively assess the appropriateness of therapy (i.e., for indication, dosing, etc.) and monitor patients for adverse effects. At the policy level, pharmacists are actively involved in formularies through their participation on Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committees for hospitals and managed care organizations, where they are often responsible for performing literature reviews and writing policy for committee approval.
As a newly ACPE-accredited provider, NCCN offers a number of high-quality web-based and live educational programs designed to meet the specific needs of oncology pharmacists. ACPE accreditation is available at the upcoming NCCN 6th Annual Congress: Hematologic Malignancies™ on September 9 – 10, 2011 in New York, NY. Additional educational opportunities for pharmacists and other clinical professionals who manage patients with cancer can be found on-line at NCCN.org/interactive.
The ACPE is the national agency for accreditation of professional degree programs in pharmacy and providers of continuing pharmacy education. ACPE`s Continuing Education Provider Accreditation Program is designed to assure pharmacists, boards of pharmacy, and other members of the pharmacy community that continuing pharmacy education programs are high-quality.