Stamford Hospital and Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center Announce Expanded Collaboration

Kathleen Silard

Today, Stamford Health and Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center​​​ ​ (DF/BWCC) formally announced an exclusive, expanded collaboration to increase access to DF/BWCC experts and resources for patients at Stamford Health’s Carl & Dorothy Bennett Cancer Center. This collaboration will bring DF/BWCC world-leading cancer treatment standards and protocols to lower Fairfield County. One of the nation’s “Best Hospitals for Cancer” (according to U.S. News & World Report), DF/BWCC will further enhance the quality, value and efficiency of medical and radiation oncology programs at Stamford Health.

Stamford Health first joined the Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Care Collaborative in 2016. That membership included an extensive review of the Bennett Cancer Center’s oncology practices and procedures and subsequent implementation of key recommendations to meet DF/BWCC standards. Now, Stamford Health and DF/BWCC are pioneering a deeper relationship that includes a mutual commitment to performance, growth, quality and patient outcomes of Stamford Health’s oncology services. This will be accomplished through several initiatives:

• Over time, Stamford Health’s physicians will follow care protocols, treatment plans, and best practices developed by DF/BWCC colleagues located in Boston. DF/BWCC physicians will also perform certain chart reviews as part of an extensive quality oversight program designed to align treatment at the Bennett Cancer Center with that of DF/BWCC. Stamford Health’s medical and radiation oncologists will be vetted and titled by DF/BWCC, the first time DF/BWCC has extended such a title to collaborating physicians in the US.
• Stamford Health and its physicians will have access to resources, such as peer observation of clinical activities at DF/BWCC, presentation of cases at collaborative tumor boards, and virtual physician-to-physician consults with specialists located at the DF/BWCC flagship location in Boston.
• Stamford Health’s cancer patients will benefit from facilitated second opinion services and streamlined access to DF/BWCC in Boston for diagnosing and treating cancer.
• Over time, Stamford Health’s cancer patients will have increased access to, and participation in, DF/BWCC clinical trials.
• Stamford Health and DF/BWCC will work together to develop new clinical programs to advance the services delivered by Stamford Health’s Bennett Cancer Center.

“This partnership is a validation of the high-quality care provided at Stamford Health’s Bennett Cancer Center,” said Kathleen Silard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Stamford Health. “Now, we look forward to offering our patients even more resources in a convenient, healing environment from physicians they know and trust."

“At Stamford Health, our organizational partnership strategy helps us offer our patients the very best care in the nation, close to home” commented Ben Wade, Senior Vice President, Strategy & Marketing at Stamford Health. “Similar to our partnership with Hospital for Special Surgery for orthopedic care, this relationship represents our commitment to our patients and the communities we serve."

“This expanded collaboration will help Stamford Health provide the latest therapies and best cancer care possible to its patients,” said Laurie H. Glimcher, MD, president and CEO, Dana-Farber. “It is an important part of our mission to reach more people, and we are pleased and excited to be working with the superb clinicians and staff at the Bennett Cancer Center.”

“The Brigham is dedicated to transforming the future of health care,” said Betsy Nabel, MD, president of the Brigham. “Through our partnership with Dana-Farber, we are on the leading edge of cancer care, and we are delighted to be strengthening the collaboration with our colleagues at Stamford Health for the benefit of patients and families in the Fairfield County region.”

Stamford Health’s Bennett Cancer Center is recognized as a comprehensive cancer center, offering excellence in cancer treatment that is patient and family-centered. Established in 1992 by the generous foresight of Carl & Dorothy Bennett, Stamford Health’s Bennett Cancer Center was Connecticut’s first community cancer center and the first cancer program in Connecticut to join the Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Care Collaborative. For the last 28 years, Stamford Health’s Bennett Cancer Center has combined state-of-the-art technology, clinical expertise and a holistic approach to treating patients. In 2019, the Bennett Cancer Center received two recognitions from the Commission on Cancer, the Outstanding Achievement Award and a three-year accreditation with commendations for all six eligible standards.