# Implementation of Operative Standards in Cancer Surgery to Improve Patient Outcomes

> **NIH NIH K08** · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · 2022 · $108,712

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The overall goal of this NCI K08 career development proposal is to facilitate Dr. Ko Un Park’s development into
an independent investigator in cancer health services research focusing on implementation strategies that
promote evidence-based care in surgical oncology and improve outcomes for cancer patients. Specifically, this
proposal will apply insights from implementation science (IS) to the application of cancer surgery standards as
set forth by the Commission on Cancer (CoC). The CoC is an accreditation organization that seeks to improve
outcomes for individual patients with cancer through standardization of care delivery across 1500 hospitals
providing care to some 70% of Americans with cancer. To date, the CoC has not paired its standards with
implementation strategies; consequently, the standards’ implementation is often poor. The overarching goal of
this project is to create stakeholder-driven strategies for adopting the use of the CoC’s new breast synoptic
operative report (SOR) standard, by using tools from IS to identify and address barriers and facilitators to SOR
implementation in diverse healthcare systems. To achieve this, in Aim 1 we will conduct key stakeholder
interviews to identify barriers and facilitators to implementing breast SOR. In Aim 2, we will use evidence of
implementation determinants to design strategies that facilitate breast SOR implementation. We will test the
influence of the strategies on key implementation outcomes (e.g., feasibility, acceptability) in Aim 3. We
hypothesize that we will identify both surgeon- and organization-level drivers of SOR implementation that can
be leveraged to establish multi-level implementation strategies that will improve breast cancer outcomes. The
planned training, proposed research project, multidisciplinary mentorship team, and exceptional research
environment at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center are ideally suited to address Dr. Park’s
career goals. Her career development plan includes formal coursework in IS as well as directed readings and
conferences. This education and mentored effort to execute the research proposal aid Dr. Park’s long-term
career goal to become an independently funded implementation scientist-clinician to improve cancer patient
outcomes by facilitating the implementation of professional self-regulation polices (i.e., CoC standards) in diverse
health systems and cancer centers, and among physicians. With this training, Dr. Park will be able to successfully
obtain funding for a subsequent prospective, multicenter trial testing the effectiveness of the strategies developed
in the proposed project.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10814029
- **Project number:** 7K08CA263488-02
- **Recipient organization:** BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** Ko Un Park
- **Activity code:** K08 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $108,712
- **Award type:** 7
- **Project period:** 2022-07-11 → 2027-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10814029

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10814029, Implementation of Operative Standards in Cancer Surgery to Improve Patient Outcomes (7K08CA263488-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10814029. Licensed CC0.

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