Accreditation Newsletters

Ambulatory Quality and Compliance Insider Briefings on The Joint Commission

Whether you're complying with The Joint Commission's National Patient Safety Goals, meeting CMS requirements, or overcoming AAAHC survey challenges, maintaining highquality patient care is no small task. Every issue of Ambulatory Quality and Compliance Insider is packed with field-tested compliance tips you can implement right away and how-to advice from ambulatory experts across the country.

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Ambulatory Quality and Compliance Insider

Issue 12, December 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Improve quality with a thorough referral program for your patients

  Young women make up a large portion of the patient population who visit the Russell Student Health...

• Survey gave center a new way to look at quality assurance practices

  The quality assurance (QA) programs at Hanover Medical Specialists, PA, in Wilmington, NC...

• Technology advances benefit accredited facilities

  AAAASF offers new Web site A growing number of ambulatory surgery facilities across the nation...

• Use safe practices in labeling drugs

  Patient safety is a top priority of any facility, and one area with high potential for jeopardizing...

Issue 11, November 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• The AAAHC proposes standards revisions for 2006 implementation

  Each year the AAAHC board looks at the organization’s existing standards to decide whether...

• New to accreditation? AAOMS forum walks you through it

  Two of the big players in ambulatory and office-based accreditation joined an open forum presented...

• Refine your preoperative assessments on patients

  A recent survey conducted by HCPro, Inc., which publishes BOAA, revealed some common anesthesia...

Issue 10, October 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Add a sense of reality to your organization’s disaster drills

  Healthcare providers at the Center for Advanced Eye Surgery in Poland, OH, sat down for a regularly...

• ASC credits AAAHC course for acheiving survey success

  The AAAHC’s Achieving Accreditation conference prepared Susan Stark, RN, administrator at...

• AAAHC: EMR is okay if you follow standards in Chapter 6

  Editor’s note: The AAAHC standard of the month is a series offered in BOAA . Our AAAHC...

• Tips on credentialing your anesthesia providers and avoiding problem areas

  Insurance, accreditation, and problem providers are just a few challenges surrounding the...

Issue 9, September 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Find a job description model that works for your organization

  Writing job descriptions in the ambulatory field can present challenges. Healthcare providers take...

• Survey provides validation of a job well done

  Every AAAHC survey experience is different, says Administrator Ellen Cooper, RN, CNOR, CASC, of...

• Know your center’s responsibilities regarding MH

  Editor’s note: The AAAHC standard of the month is a series offered in BOAA. Our AAAHC experts...

• How to obtain adequate informed consent

  Surgery centers must obtain written consent from patients that they have been given sufficient...

Issue 8, August 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Get patients involved in medication reconciliation for goal compliance

  The JCAHO’s National Patient Safety Goal 8 requires organizations to accurately and...

• New management team in Texas does well in their AAAHC survey

  The new administrator and new nurse managers at Surgicare of South Austin in Texas had never been...

• Host an open house and show off your surgery center

  The Federated Ambulatory Surgery Association (FASA) third annual open house day was August 2, but...

• Knee arthroscopy study reveals importance of benchmarking anesthesia practices

  The results of the AAAHC Institute for Quality Improvement’s (AAAHC Institute) fifth Knee...

Issue 7, July 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• JCAHO announces 2006 Patient Safety Goals for all settings

  ’Hand-offs’ and medication labeling to be required Ambulatory surgery centers (ASC...

• Elder affairs: Improve geriatric care

  Advances in healthcare allow most people longer lives, and that longevity is starting to catch up...

• Advice for your pediatric anesthesia policy

  Your pediatric patients need special considerations regarding their anesthesia. During the...

• Break the habit: IM.3.10, prohibited abbreviations

  Enforcing compliance with IM.3.10 EP 2 and National Patient Safety Goal # 2B, which both focus on...

Issue 6, June 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Educate your staff about how to handle anesthesia awareness

  Twenty-one million patients go under general anesthesia every year, and roughly 21,000 of them...

• AAAHC survey: Third time is a charm for Ohio surgery center

  An Ohio surgery center learned so much from its first two AAAHC surveys that its latest one was a...

• CMS releases updated ASC procedure list

  Industry experts pleased with news but say more needs to be done Editor’s note: This...

• How to stay out of trouble with your drug samples

  Pharmaceutical sales representatives come into healthcare settings with all sorts of sample drugs...

Issue 5, May 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• How to prepare for your 2006 unannounced JCAHO survey

  Come January 1, 2006, the JCAHO will conduct all surveys unannounced. This means no more cramming...

• Preparation makes your staff ready for the AAAHC survey

  A successful surgery center will advise you to practice continual readiness to ace your survey. But...

• Finally, CMS allows hand-gel dispensers in corridors

  Facilities must prevent leaking and guard against dispenser abuse from patients Ending a...

• Observation can improve hand-hygiene practices

  Proper hand hygiene may seem an obvious part of a healthcare job, but time constraints...

• Protect staff with a quality ergonomic program

  Nursing positions show up twice in the Bureau of Labor Statistics list of most work-related...

Issue 4, April 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Start benchmarking in your ASC

  Start benchmarking in your ASC Benchmarking helps organizations determine what processes need...

• How to change communication culture

  How to change communication culture Use crew resource management and behavior models...

• Be aware of extensive QI revisions to Chapter 5

  Be aware of extensive QI revisions to Chapter 5 The AAAHC's revised Chapter 5: Quality...

• Surgery center aces survey with staff efficiency

  Surgery center aces survey with staff efficiency The Surgery and Laser Center in Seneca, PA...

• Gain focus, don't panic when completing your PPR requirement

  Gain focus, don't panic when completing your PPR requirement Effective in 2006, JCAHO...

Issue 3, March 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• How 2006 NPSGs will affect ASCs

  Just as JCAHO-accredited surgery centers across the country worked to implement the 2005 National...

• AAAHC surveyor provides valuable info

  When the Endoscopy Center of Pennsylvania, moved into its own building in 1996, it applied for...

• Get specific on site verification to remain compliant

  Editor's note: This article is part of a new monthly series offered in BOAA. Our AAAHC experts...

• Reduce fire risks within your OR and sedation units

  Editor's note: The following is an excerpt from the HCPro book Sedation, Anesthesia, and the JCAHO...

• New NPSG says three strikes and you're out

  Surveyors will now score two National Patient Safety Goal (NPSG) requirements that no longer...

Issue 2, February 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Pharmacists in bigger roles in ASCs

  Results from the "2004 Survey of Ambulatory Care Pharmacy Practice in Health Systems" show that...

• Survey says it's a chart-topper

  When the Hawthorn Endoscopy Center of North Dartmouth, MA, opened five years ago, it sought...

• Discuss risks and alternatives with patients; use standard documentation

  Ensure that your patients understand the options and risks of their care. Improperly or...

• Conducting and documenting meetings

  You may be expected by your organization to give every employee an opportunity to participate in a...

• Use proper IV admixture process in your organization

  In spring 2004 the JCAHO clarified standard MM.4.20 to allow nurses to prepare IV admixtures when a...

Issue 1, January 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Go cold turkey with smoking policy

  Although the JCAHO and AAAHC require ambulatory surgery centers (ASC) to implement no-smoking...

• Extend HIPAA compliance to the waiting room

  Patient waiting rooms are an extension of ambulatory surgery centers (ASC), and compliance with the...

• Simplified patient education is more effective

  Effective patient education can lead to greater patient satisfaction, fewer post-surgery visits to...