NPCR-AERRO Implementation

NPCR-AERRO participates in specific implementation activities by coordinating, leading, and supporting software vendors, hospitals, laboratories, and state cancer registries to test and implement the NPCR-AERRO models and products.

Methods

The Technical Development team collaborates with workgroups and other subject matter experts to—

• Define need and scope based on model/analysis (type of tool).
• Develop requirements for implementation.
• Use existing tools when applicable or develop software when needed.
• Test implementation of specific model components.
• Document lessons learned for use in broader implementation.
• Develop and maintain the NPCR-AERRO Web site.
• Provide consultation, support, and training for implementation of models.

Note: Please see the Glossary [PDF-777KB] for definitions of technical terms.

Activities

CyberView

NPCR-AERRO developed best-practice models, UML diagrams, and use case documents for electronic reporting and registry automation. Cyberview provides a refined view of cancer registry processes by allowing the user to move from one level of granularity to a more detailed level.

Electronic Pathology (ePath) Reporting

• ePath pilot project. This project involved pilot implementation of reporting from national pathology laboratories to state central cancer registries using the NAACCR Standards for Cancer Registries, Volume V Pathology Laboratory Electronic Reporting. NAACCR completed the modeling, analysis, and design of this project. NPCR-AERRO built on NAACCR’s work by initiating a pilot test of their standard using CDC’s Public Health Information Network Messaging System (PHINMS) as the infrastructure for secure data transmission. This pilot project has expanded to a broad implementation project.
• Parsing, text mining, and coding enhancements for Electronic Mapping, Reporting, and Coding (eMaRC) Plus. Through initial analysis and design of text mining/natural language processing, “NegEx” methodology was identified for enhancement of eMaRC Plus. By building this feature in eMaRC Plus and incorporating a list of pre- and post-negation terms, the software parses through textual pathology reports and minimizes the number of “false positive” cancer cases flagged for review.

Clinic/Physician Office Reporting (CPO)

• Implementation Guide. In August 2012, CDC published the Implementation Guide for Ambulatory Healthcare Provider Reporting to Central Cancer Registries, August 2012, to be used by EHR vendors as the standard for implementation of electronic reporting of cancer case information from physician EHRs to central cancer registries.
• Comparative Effectiveness Research Pilot special projects. These projects involved pilot implementation of cancer reporting from physician Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems to state central cancer registries using the Implementation Guide for Ambulatory Healthcare Provider Reporting to Central Cancer Registries, August 2012. The NAACCR Physician Reporting Workgroup developed Implementation Guide, based on work first initially conducted by the NPCR and the NPCR-AERRO CPO Workgroup.
• eMarC Plus processing of physician reports. Through input from the Mapping small workgroup and the NPCR development team, enhancements have been made to eMaRC Plus to enable it to parse the physician reports, map the data elements to the NAACCR data elements, and translate data values to the NAACCR data values. The Physician Reporting module was released for use in production in June 2014.
• Validation tool. CDC developed CDA Validation Plus to validate the structure and content of the physician reports in the HL7 Clinical Document Architecture (CDA) being produced from the physician EHRs. The second production release, version 2.0, was distributed to interested state cancer registries and EHR vendors in April 2014.