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As an oncology fellow, Stephen Schleicher, MD, MBA, was warned by well-intentioned academic colleagues that community oncology offered fewer opportunities than academic or hospital settings. Finding the opposite to be true, Dr. Schleicher—now the chief medical officer of the third largest independent practice in the United States—helps future oncologists and hematologists understand why community oncology should be their top practice choice.
With a business and medical background, Dr. Schleicher searched for a setting that would combine both interests. As he completed his training at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the opportunities and advice pointed towards academia—but community oncology offered everything he was looking for: a focus on leadership, care innovation, and personalized patient care.
“Community oncology exceeded my wildest expectations,” Dr. Schleicher said. “I get to care for patients in the comfort of their communities, supported by resources that surpass almost any institution in the country. That’s what the COA Fellows Initiative is about - showing the next generation of providers why community oncology is an amazing and rewarding career path.”
As a committed member of the COA Fellows Initiative, Dr. Schleicher shows oncologists in training that community oncology can offer the best of both worlds: access to innovative treatments, mentorship, healthy work/life balance, and collaboration typically associated with academic or hospital centers; and the personal, patient-centered care that can only be found in a community setting.
“We have an opportunity to help oncology and hematology fellows across the country discover a practice setting they may have overlooked,” Dr. Schleicher said. “This next generation of community oncologists and hematologists will be the reason millions of patients continue to have access to convenient, affordable, and personalized care.”
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