Establishing a framework for building multidisciplinary programs

Cheryl Meguid,¹ Carrie E Ryan,² Barish H Edil,¹ Richard D Schulick,¹ Csaba Gajdos,¹ Megan Boniface,¹ Tracey E Schefter,³ W Thomas Purcell,⁴ Martin McCarter<sup>1

1</sup>Department of Surgery, Division of GI, Tumor, and Endocrine Surgery, Section of Surgical Oncology, University of Colorado Hospital, Aurora, CO, ²Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, ³Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, ⁴Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Colorado Hospital, Aurora, CO, USA

Abstract: While most providers support the concept of a multidisciplinary approach to patient care, challenges exist to the implementation of successful multidisciplinary clinical programs. As patients become more knowledgeable about their disease through research on the Internet, they seek hospital programs that offer multidisciplinary care. At the University of Colorado Hospital, we utilize a formal multidisciplinary approach across a variety of clinical settings, which has been beneficial to patients, providers, and the hospital. We present a reproducible framework to be used as a guide to develop a successful multidisciplinary program.

Keywords: multidisciplinary clinic, patient centered, tumor board