2022 Colorectal Cancer Screening Awards
Rapid City Medical Center’s Gastroenterology Clinic is home to the largest group of board-certified gastroenterologists in western South Dakota. The five physician partners, alongside eight Physician Assistants and Certified Nurse Practitioners and a skilled team of nurses and care professionals, perform over 6000 procedures each year in the clinic, endoscopy center, and local hospital. The group is committed to excellence and proud of their statistics with 99.98% of colonoscopies performed without perforation of the colon and a 56% adenoma detection rate when the national performance target is 25%. Last year the staff held a t-shirt fundraiser in lieu of the Bottoms Up 5K (due to Covid). They raised and donated $1,775.82 to the Colon Cancer Coalition!
The Horizon clinic teams have dedicated time for monthly meetings and continued education with their clinical care teams to demonstrate the importance of and their commitment to colorectal cancer screening efforts. Three clinics have been collaborating with the SD Department of Health since June 2020 to implement evidence-based interventions to increase colorectal cancer screening rates. They have reduced structural barriers in hard to reach populations. Horizon has built relationships with partner facilities to complete colonoscopies for patients in need. In 2021, Horizon James Valley Community Health Center worked with the Huron Regional Medical Center to complete 5 screening colonoscopies with grant funds for patients who were uninsured. They have increased screening rates in participating clinics and overall as an organization. For example, the James Valley Community Health Center screening rates increased from 44% to 58%; the Aberdeen Clinic increased from 32% to 35%; and the Martin Clinic increased from 39% to 50%. The staff have educated patients and increased the iFOBT return rates. Patient navigators and clinic champions have been at the core of the work to achieve these goals.
