April 2024

APSHO Vision

High-quality, cost-effective hematology and oncology patient care delivered through collaborative practice models that optimize the role of advanced practitioners.

 

APSHO Mission

Our mission is to improve the quality of care for patients with cancer by supporting critical issues in educational, clinical, and professional development for advanced practitioners in hematology and oncology.

 

Environmental Forces Impacting the Profession

The healthcare environment is undergoing considerable and rapid change, affecting patients, practitioners, and payors. Changes in the hematology/oncology healthcare environment and workforce are impacting the ways that healthcare professionals interact and provide care. The pace and magnitude of this impact on different professions and constituencies vary. The practice and professional environment within which APSHO members operate impacts their priorities and decisions.

Increasing complexities in delivering cancer treatment, including but not limited to advancements in treatment therapies, drive the need for a higher level of multidisciplinary education among advanced practitioners (APs) in hematology and oncology.

The simultaneous increased number of cancer patients and anticipated shortage of oncologists emphasizes the importance of the AP role in the interdisciplinary/collaborative delivery of quality cancer care.

• Professional and public awareness of the expanding roles and value of APs has not kept up with the pace of evolution in the hematology/oncology healthcare model.
• It is within this changing environment that APSHO must set its organizational priorities and allocate resources to continue to meet the needs of current and future members.

 

Key environmental forces that will impact APs in the hematology and oncology profession include, but are not limited to:

 

Growing Complexities of Care

• Rapid expansion and complexity of therapeutics
• Changing roles and responsibilities of healthcare providers
• More restrictive and complex requirements for obtaining compensation for services delivered

 

Limited Financial Resources for Professional Development and Education of the Hematology/Oncology AP

• APSHO will need to increase membership and develop multiple channels of access to the financial resources required to deliver high-value education and other member benefits.
• Institutional discretionary dollars available to APs are decreasing while education needs continue to expand.

 

Professional and Public Awareness of Hematology/Oncology AP

• Insufficient understanding of the value of APs in hematology and oncology in a dynamic healthcare delivery model can impede the delivery of high-quality, cost-effective patient care.

 

The APSHO Board updated the strategic plan focused on outcomes, initiatives, and goals aligned with the mission and vision of the Society. This updated strategic plan aims to direct the activities of the Society, to grow the membership, increase awareness of the AP’s critical role in collaborative hematology/oncology practice, and continue a sustainable revenue stream.

 

Strategic Plan Outcomes

Building on the original strategic plan published in 2017, APSHO’s Board of Directors reviewed and revised the strategic plan in July of 2020 and in January of 2024. Three key strategic outcomes are identified: Continue in the role of the premier provider of clinical hematology/oncology education for the advanced practitioner • Advocate for the AP role in collaborative hematology/oncology practice as critical to quality and cost-effective patient care. Further organizational financial stability by increasing membership and developing sustainable revenue streams

 

How Do We Plan on Achieving These Outcomes?

The next section describes the initiatives set forth by the APSHO Board of Directors to achieve the strategic outcomes. The initiatives include:

Initiative #1: Developing Quality Clinical Content
Initiative #2: Building Strategic Alliances
Initiative #3: Supporting AP Research and Quality Improvement Initiatives
Initiative #4: Promoting External Advocacy
Initiative #5: Growing Revenue Streams
Initiative #6: Develop and Support AP Leaders
Initiative #7: Incorporating Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Principles

 

Initiative #1. Developing Inter-collaborative Quality Content

Goals

• Deliver educational content designed to help all hematology and oncology APs successfully navigate the complexities of hematology/oncology care
• Provide educational experiences that support the exchange of ideas and collegiality between APs and other oncology professionals
• Make educational offerings affordable and accessible

 

Initiative #2 Building Strategic Alliances

Goals:

• Increase stakeholder awareness of the critical roles the AP plays in the delivery of quality and cost-effective patient care
• Establish working partnerships with external hematology/oncology; government and/or, regulatory organizations

 

Initiative #3: Promote the Integration of Research, including AP-Led Research and Quality Improvement Initiatives into Practice

Goals:

• Support AP-led research and quality initiatives (QI).
• Integrate AP-led research and quality initiatives into APSHO activities.
• APSHO initiatives to promote effective integration of research into practice.

 

Initiative #4: Promoting External Advocacy

Goals

• Build strategic alliances to influence policy decisions relevant to the AP in hematology/oncology
• Support hematology/oncology patient advocacy

 

Initiative #5: Growing Revenue Streams

Goals:

• Develop an expanded network of APs to develop strategic alliances between industry stakeholders, oncologists, patients and their families
• Retain and increase membership in APSHO
• Continue collaboration with corporate members
• Empower APSHO Committees to produce content/projects/deliverables based on the APSHO strategic plan and identified trends
• Continue to develop non-dues revenue opportunities

 

Initiative #6. Develop and Support AP Leaders

Goals:

• Support current AP leaders within the APSHO community
• Provide networking opportunities within APSHO for hematology/oncology AP leaders.
• Provide education, mentoring and growth opportunities for upcoming hematology/oncology AP leaders.
• Promote the value of the hematology/oncology AP in the leadership suite

 

Initiative #7: Incorporating Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Principles

Goals:

• Foster an environment that promotes equity, supports diversity, and ensures inclusivity across all levels of the organization.