PORi Center of Excellence in Oncology Rehabilitation

Accreditation Standards Overview

The PORi Center of Excellence in Oncology Rehabilitation (COE) accreditation pathway is structured in three levels: Bronze, Silver, and Gold. Each stage is distinguished by its focus - Bronze concentrates on clinician training and alignment with PORi clinical standards; Silver emphasizes standardized rehabilitation program operations and patient management; and Gold represents full integration within oncology care service lines (systems) and proactive community outreach. Each successive level builds upon the previous, guiding organizations from individual clinician excellence to comprehensive, system-wide engagement in oncology rehabilitation.
If you're interested in reading an overview of the COE Standards to gain a better understanding of how each PORi COE level (Bronze, Silver, and Gold) impacts your cancer rehabilitation program, please log in or create an account.

PORi COE Standards Overview

Bronze Standards – Clinical Capability Level

Focus: Practitioner education, facility compliance, and alignment with PORi clinical protocols.
Purpose: Establishes the professional and comprehensive clinical foundation for oncology rehabilitation services.

Key Elements:
  1. Clinician Training: All providers must complete the PORi Foundation course and relevant PORi CORE course(s). Each facility must have PORi-Certified Therapists or Specialists on staff.
  2. Commitment to Excellence: Leadership provides a statement of intent, committing to the PORi COE designation.
  3. Standardized Clinical Care: Therapists formally commit to using PORi treatment protocols for consistent, evidence-based rehabilitation.
  4. Compliance & Licensing: Facilities must demonstrate compliance with all licensing, safety, and documentation regulations.
Outcome: Establishes a baseline of consistent clinical excellence and adherence to the PORi system of care - PORi Certified clinicians and PORi treatment alignment.

Silver Standards – Program Development & Operations Level

Focus: Internal oncology rehabilitation program processes, patient management, and professional culture.
Purpose: Expands from individual clinician readiness (Bronze) to program-level processes, patient management, and staff culture.

Key Elements:
  1. Documentation & Functional Outcome Measures:
    • Comprehensive documentation standards (cancer history, treatment details, objective measures, plans of care).
    • Systematic use of general and cancer-specific functional outcome measures to track patient progress.
  2. Patient Care Framework:
    • Use of the PORi Plan of Care Model (PORi POC) across all cancer phases: prehab, active treatment, survivorship, and progressive disease.
    • Structured goal setting in line with PORi POC and the chronic disease model of care.
    • Internal referral systems across PT, OT, SLP.
    • Standardized patient education (HEPs, surgical instructions, symptom management).
  3. New Patient Processing:
    • Defined workflow from referral to evaluation (insurance verification, navigation, scheduling, communication).
    • Timely scheduling with prioritization for prehab and post-op cases.
  4. Patient Experience: 
    • Wellness-focused environment (“service-scape”).
    • Adoption of Client Perspective Approach to Cancer Care (CPACC). 
  5. Professional Wellness Infrastructure:
    • Adoption of Therapist Perspective Approach to Cancer Care (TPACC).
    • Defining team values, wellness frameworks, and active monitoring of staff wellbeing.
Outcome: Ensures the program has operational systems, structured patient care pathways, positive patient experiences, and resilient staff infrastructure.

Gold Standards – System Integration Level

Focus: Full integration into oncology service lines, quality improvement, and community engagement.
Purpose: Positions the oncology rehabilitation program as a fully integrated and recognized service line within the overarching oncology service line and the broader community.

Key Elements:
  1. Oncology Service Line Integration:
    • Establishment of a PORi COE Committee with leadership and clinical representatives.
  2. Interdisciplinary Collaboration - “Rehabilitation as the 4th Pillar of Oncology Care”:
    • Participation in tumor boards and case conferences.
    • Contributions to hospital cancer committees.
    • Formal systems for provider relationship management.
    • Referral networks to external providers (garment/DME suppliers, resources).
  3. Quality Improvement (QI):
    • Routine collection and analysis of key data (patient volumes, referrals, outcomes, missed visits, productivity).
    • At least one QI initiative per year with structured tracking and reporting.
  4. Community Services & Outreach:
    • Accessible patient resources (support groups, financial aid, transportation).
    • Wellness promotion efforts (classes, events, lifestyle initiatives).
  5. Community awareness activities (health fairs, provider talks, media stories).
Outcome: Positions oncology rehabilitation as fully embedded in the cancer service line, data-driven, and community-connected.