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Initiative Updates: Gold Standard
2020
Work is progressing to update the Five Pillars of the CEO Cancer Gold Standard™, the employer-led health and wellness accreditation program of the CEO Roundtable on Cancer. Key changes identified so far include increased focus on well-being in the workplace and increased support for cancer survivors and their return to work.
“More than 7 million employees have better access to cancer prevention and treatment because their employer implemented the Gold Standard,” said MaryLis Rich, President of the Cancer Gold Standard and Member Services. “But we’re going for Gold and that requires us to reach higher and expand our influence if we are truly going to fight cancer.”
A Steering Committee of experts is guiding the work, which relies on the latest research about key steps to improve health. The team also is incorporating evidence from recent events such as the pandemic, which emphasize the need for employee resilience. That team includes:
- David Shepperly, MD, Executive Director Occupational Health, Bristol Myers Squibb
- Marcelo C. Targino, MD, MPH, Chief Employee Health Officer & Corporate Medical Director, Johnson & Johnson
- L. Michelle Bennett, PhD, Director Center for Research Strategy, National Cancer Institute
- Otis Brawley, MD, a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins University and a globally recognized expert in cancer prevention and control.
- Ron Goetzel, PhD, Senior Scientist at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins.
Information about the CEO Cancer Gold Standard update will be shared at the Annual Meeting and Conference and by email.
Global biopharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb, based in Princeton, NJ, has earned the prestigious Global CEO Cancer Gold StandardTM accreditation for its ongoing commitment to reduce cancer risk for employees and their family members around the world.
“We are proud of this prestigious accreditation as it demonstrates our long-standing commitment to the health and safety of our employees,” said Giovanni Caforio, M.D., chairman and chief executive officer, Bristol Myers Squibb. “As a company focused on helping patients with serious disease, we are committed to making health and wellness a priority for our employees and their families through a range of programs focused on mental and physical health. We are proud to be recognized for these efforts, which we believe support our ability to deliver on our vision of transforming patients’ lives through science.”
This accreditation recognizes the Company’s exceptional efforts worldwide to reduce cancer risk by promoting healthy lifestyle choices, encouraging early detection through cancer screenings, and ensuring broad access to innovative cancer therapies that are extending lives, improving quality of life and increasing productivity for employees and their family members around the globe.
To be accredited as a Global Gold Standard organization, employers must achieve and maintain CEO Cancer Gold Standard accreditation in the U.S. and China, maintain a tobacco-free policy worldwide, and satisfy the essence and spirit of the five key areas of workplace wellness that are foundations of the Gold Standard.
Bristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. For more information about Bristol Myers Squibb, visit BMS.com.
Eighteen employers are celebrating their ten-year anniversary as CEO Cancer Gold Standard employers, an exceptional accomplishment and testament to their strong commitment to the health of their employees.
“Employers can play a huge role in reducing cancer risks among their employees with programs that include behavior modification, mental well-being and cancer screenings,” said Steve Rusckowski, Chairman, CEO and President, Quest Diagnostics.
In addition to Quest Diagnostics, the following employers are leading by example and celebrating ten years of leadership:
- AlphaMed Press
- Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Care
- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina
- Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas
- Cerner Corporation
- Dell Technologies
- Fairview Health Services
- Goodmans Interior Structures
- Hawai’i Pacific Health
- Logistics Health
- MassMutual
- MDU Resources Group, Inc.
- Moda, Inc.
- RTI International
- RWJBarnabas Health
- Susan G. Komen
- UPMC Chautauqua.
To earn Gold Standard accreditation, an employer must take concrete actions to reduce the risk and burden of cancer: prohibit tobacco use and support tobacco cessation efforts; promote physical activity, healthy nutrition and weight management; provide health insurance options that include detecting cancer at its earliest stages, access to quality care and participation in cancer clinical trials; promote employee awareness of these initiatives; and support the needs of cancer survivors in the workplace.
MaryLisabeth Rich
More than 200 employers are covering 7 million lives through CEO Cancer Gold Standard accreditation, an impressive population benefitting from increased cancer awareness, prevention and treatment. But the CEO Roundtable on Cancer Gold Standard Task Force is asking whether that’s enough.
“Can we do more as employers to be a catalyst for better health in our communities?” said MaryLisabeth Rich, President of the Gold Standard and Member Services. “Enormous health disparities exist so we need to ask ourselves whether we can bridge the gap in clinical trial diversity through corporate well-being? Healthy communities are good for our business, good for recruiting and retaining employees and it’s the right thing to do.”
MaryLisabeth is exploring the topic with leadership from the Task Force and in preparation for this year’s CEO Roundtable on Cancer Annual Meeting and Conference, where there will be more presentations and discussion of how companies can “Go for the Gold” and reach a higher level of health for their community. One aspect to be explored is a potential partnership between corporate partners and historically black colleges and universities.
At the CEO Roundtable on Cancer, we've come a long way in the 20 years since President George H.W. Bush urged us to do everything we could to defeat cancer. One of the Bushes’ grandsons, Sam LeBlond, recently asked Dr. Martin Murphy to recall the start of the Roundtable and how it has expanded into China.
LeBlond hosts All the Best, a weekly podcast for the George & Barbara Bush Foundation. All the Best features interviews with the Bushes’ family, friends, former colleagues and fellow Points of Light with a special emphasis on service to others.
We hope you’ll take a listen to Episode 15, “The Gold Standard.” The podcast is on Apple podcasts or can be found here: http://allthebestbush.libsyn.com/15-the-gold-standard
Anne Arundel Medical Center
The CEO Roundtable on Cancer has accredited Anne Arundel Medical Center with the CEO Cancer Gold StandardTM recognizing its efforts to reduce the risk of cancer for its employees and covered family members.
“Anne Arundel Medical Center is honored to be among the leading organizations to achieve the CEO Cancer Gold Standard Accreditation,” said Sherry B. Perkins, president of Anne Arundel Medical Center. “We strive to provide the highest quality of care for our patients and are equally committed to promoting the wellbeing of our employees and their families. We offer the latest technology in diagnostics and treatments with access to innovative research and clinical trials to deliver care and support that comes with compassion. Cancer is not only treating a disease; it’s caring for each person throughout his or her journey.”
Employers from many industries are keenly aware of the positive impact they can have on health and controlling healthcare costs when they take steps to address cancer and other chronic diseases.
2019
Meeting health and wellness champions from around the country. Learning and sharing evidence-based best practices.
Therese Martin represented the CEO Roundtable on Cancer at the 2019 Building Healthy Academic Communities (BHAC) Summit held on the campus of the first BIG Ten University to earn Gold Standard accreditation, The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. BHAC connects health and wellness professionals from US academic institutions in pursuit of healthier campuses.
Recognizing leaders in academia are uniquely suited to influence their own institutions workforce as well as the leaders for tomorrow, Ms. Martin encouraged those in attendance to lead by example by earning Gold Standard accreditation. The message that leadership drives culture and prevention saves lives was well recieved.
2018
Dave Shepperly & Ann Skye at ORCHSE Meeting, August 8, 2018 in Washington, DC.
David Shepperly, MD, MHS, FACOEM, Head of Employee Health and Fitness at Bristol-Myers Squibb, invited fellow Gold Standard Task Force Member Ann Skye, BSN, MPH, Associate Director, Employee Health Management for IQVIA, to present an overview of the Gold Standard to the ORCHSE Strategies summer meeting of the Corporate Health Directors Network in Washington, DC.
Ann's overview of the unique global approach to wellness in the workplace using the framework of the CEO Cancer Gold Standard was well received. The presentation prompted a productive discussion and garnered interest in the program from meeting participants. We thank Ann and Dave for their efforts to expand the reach and impact of the Gold Standard!
ORC HSE is a membership based global HSE (Health, Safety, and Environment) networking and service firm that has been connecting HSE thought leaders across the globe for more than 45 years. The Corporate Health Directors Network serves corporate leaders with primary responsibility for occupational health program management, drawing members from the most innovative multinational Fortune 500 companies.
Ann Skye, BSN, MPH, Associate Director, Employee Health Management, IQVIA
Employers can play a pivotal role in reducing cancer incidence and premature death. Healthier employees and healthier bottom lines can be achieved by providing evidence-based prevention and early detection services and encouraging employee engagement. By providing access and encouraging participation, more lives – and more money-be saved. The Gold Standard's employer-led work-place wellness model is now being shared in China and across the globe.
Ann Skye, BSN, MPH, Associate Director, Employee Health Management, IQVIA, and Global Gold Standard Subcommittee Chair, was invited by the International Association of Worksite Health Promotion (IAWHP) and the Global Center for Healthy Workplaces (GCHW) to discuss how the Gold Standard's evidence-based wellness framework can be adopted by corporations with a presence in the US, China and globally. Ann was joined by representatives from Gold Standard employers, Bristol-Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline and Novartis who also shared their unique insights and perspectives.
The informative presentation and subsequent discussion focused on the challenges associated with adapting the Gold Standard requirements to a global workforce with particular emphasis on China. A recording of the webinar is available here.
Meeting the Gold Standard’s comprehensive requirements is a notable achievement. To meet the complex challenges of adopting this standard of health and wellness globally and in China takes exceptional leadership.
Elisabet de los Pinos, PhD, CEO, Aura Biosciences
The CEO Roundtable on Cancer has accredited Aura Biosciences of Cambridge, MA — a biotechnology company developing a new class of therapies to target and selectively destroy cancer cells — with the CEO Cancer Gold StandardTM recognizing its efforts to reduce the risk of cancer for its employees and covered family members.
“Our passion at Aura Biosciences is to improve treatment options for a wide range of cancers that are poorly managed today — so this recognition is very meaningful to us,” said Aura Chief Executive Officer Elisabet de los Pinos, Ph.D. “We are dedicated to creating a healthy workplace where employees have access to the highest quality medical care.”
Employers from many industries are keenly aware of the positive impact they can have on health and controlling healthcare costs when they take steps to address cancer and other chronic diseases.
The University of Iowa has earned the CEO Cancer Gold Standardaccreditation from the CEO Roundtable on Cancer, a nonprofit that recognizes workplaces that are exceptionally committed to reducing the risk of cancer among employees.
“As a university, our most important asset is our people,” says UI President J. Bruce Harreld. “Since innovative health care is one of the major areas of education, research, and service at the UI, we are especially proud to earn this accreditation. The health and well-being of our university community is of paramount importance to our values and to our success.”
After George Weiner, director of the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, secured the gold standard accreditation for UI Health Care last year, Harreld sought to ensure the university as a whole also met the accreditation requirements.
2017
Richard Staub, President of R&D Solutions, QuintilesIMS, Co-host of the Gold Standard Friendraiser
On October 12, QuintilesIMS hosted a CEO Cancer Gold Standard “Friendraiser” to celebrate the 10-years of Gold Standard leadership of QuintilesIMS, Duke Health, GlaxoSmithKline plc and SAS and to introduce the Gold Standard to other North Carolina-based employers. The following day, a workshop was held at QuintilesIMS' headquarters in the Research Triangle Park, NC, to provide hands-on accreditation assistance to HR staff whose employers accepted the invitation to “Go for the Gold.”
Created with support from a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) grant to encourage university CEO Cancer Gold Standard outreach and accreditation, the recently launched University Toolkit provides an online resource of best practices, FAQs, policy models and supporting research publications.
The Gold Standard is an employer-led health and wellness initiative designed to both acomdate and encourage employers of diverse organizations who wish to lead by example through their workplace policies and culture.The current version of our Toolkit, however, is specifically designed to address some of the challenges unique to an academic campus environments.