The Bermuda Cancer & Health Centre has been awarded accreditation in radiation oncology by the American College of Radiology.

It is the first clinic outside the United States to achieve the recognition, a voluntary process designed to highlight excellence in patient care and safety.

Managers at the Paget centre said the award meant patients can be confident of world-class treatment on the island.

Chris Fosker, the medical director and radiation oncologist, said: “This is a tremendous accomplishment for our centre and is a testament to our commitment to the highest quality of care for our patients.

“By voluntarily undergoing this rigorous review, we secure a high level of confidence for not only our patients but also referring physicians.”

The centre provides radiation therapy in partnership with Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Centre in Boston and can treat 95 per cent of all cancer where radiation is a recommended treatment course.

The radiation therapy unit, opened in 2017, underwent the ACR assessment process so it could be compared against international standards.

Lynne Woolridge, the CEO of the centre, said: “Being recognised for meeting internationally accepted radiology standards is an outstanding achievement that supports our initiatives to improve outcomes and ensure patient safety, but also our mission to provide the highest standard of early detection and radiation treatment, support, care and education for cancer and other diseases for all.”

The centre said the ACR seal of approval guaranteed the highest levels of quality and patient safety.

It is awarded to treatment centres which meet guidelines and technical standards developed by ACR after an evaluation by expert radiation oncologists and medical physicists.

Patient care and treatment, patient safety, staff qualifications, equipment, quality control and quality assurance programmes are all assessed.

The results go to the ACR committee on radiation oncology accreditation, which gives the practice with a report to assist in practice improvement.