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, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• How to handle quality and not lose your sanity

  The quality chapter of the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) manual may...

• The Joint Commission seeks input on standard revisions

  Confused about how to comply with some of the Joint Commission (formerly JCAHO) standards? Think...

• Creating a culture of safety in ASCs takes time

  The new standard calling on ambulatory surgery centers (ASC) to create a culture of safety may not...

Issue 11, November 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• New CMS proposal would bar overnight stays for every ASC patient

  The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' proposed new Conditions for Coverage (CfC) would...

• Expert offers tips about facility and environment standards

  Even though William E. Lindeman, AIA, NCARB, has shown the slide at presentations before, the...

• FMEAs identify risks before they become disasters

  Editor's note: This is the second in a series of stories about Failure Modes and Effects Analysis...

• Recovery room nurse key to med rec process

  The reason ambulatory surgery centers (ASC) struggle so mightily with medication reconciliation is...

Issue 10, October 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• CMS proposes new CfCs for ambulatory centers

  In the first significant change in 25 years, CMS has proposed new Conditions for Coverage (CfC...

• NY organizations urged to act now or risk getting caught in the stampede to receive accreditation

  Office-based surgery suites may have nearly two years to comply with the new law in New York state...

• Meticulous paperwork helps at survey time

  Pay attention to the paperwork and the tiniest details if you want your organization to shine...

• Methodology key to measuring quality

  The director of Watertown-based Massachusetts Health Quality Partners (MHQP), part of a...

• FMEAs identify risks before they become disasters

  Editor's note: This is the first in a series of stories about Failure Modes and Effects Analysis...

Issue 9, September 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Critics worry about financial impact of CMS' final ASC rule

  Some are hailing it as a step in the right direction, but critics say many ambulatory surgical...

• Older building does not hinder the survey process

  Administrator Anita Judy had been through many successful Accreditation Association for Ambulatory...

Issue 8, August 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Joint Commission issues new anticoagulant requirement

  Ambulatory surgical centers (ASC) that want to comply with the new requirement set forth by The...

• Joint Commission revises standard for contract workers

  The Joint Commission, formerly known as the JCAHO, has revised standard LD.3.50, which requires...

• Campus survey focuses on charting, quality improvement

  As with most on-campus health centers, Boettcher Health Center, the student health center for...

• Present only pertinent data on quality dashboards

  Quality improvement (QI) directors who want to build effective dashboards should present a few...

Issue 7, July 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Anatomy of a sentinel event: What an analysis taught one surgery center

  Questions abounded at an ambulatory surgical center (ASC) when a 26-year-old woman died from a...

• ASC administrator relied on corporate help

  Preparing for a survey by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) can be...

• The Joint Commission releases new FAQs on tissue storage

  Of the nine new FAQs regarding tissue storage that The Joint Commission recently released, the one...

• What the healthcare industry can learn from aviation

  Editor's note: HCPro interviewed three patient safety experts about the lessons that the healthcare...

Issue 6, June 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Why one administrator actually liked her unannounced survey

  The prospect of unannounced surveys may elicit fear and loathing among many ambulatory surgery...

• Studies offer information about your peers' successes

  Organizations taking part in the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC...

• Pennsylvania pioneers mandatory near-miss reporting

  Near-miss reporting provides rich information that could potentially reduce adverse events, yet...

• How to get patients more involved in their own care

  Patient-centered care demands that doctors not only examine what's the matter with the patient but...

Issue 5, May 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Pay attention to QI studies, credentialing for success

  Organize your key accreditation documents, study the standards, and pay particular attention to...

• Equipment, credentialing are top risk areas for ASCs

  The qualities that make ambulatory surgery centers (ASC) so appealing to doctors, hospitals, and...

• Setting up quality controls and systems key to ASC safety

  Ambulatory surgery centers (ASC) have healthier patients, perform fewer complex procedures, and...

• NPIs needed to apply for quality reporting bonuses

  Susan Nedza, MD, MBA, of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has one key piece of...

• Recent Summit Award winner shares story

  The Elliot 1-Day Surgery Center in Manchester, NH, was one of seven ambulatory surgery centers...

• Sick visits offer chances to keep children well

  When children come to Denver Health and Hospital Authority's community health services with the...

Issue 4, April 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Organizations struggling with credentialing, peer review

  Guaranteeing the competence of clinicians is one of the top compliance challenges for organizations...

• Focus on high-risk patients for fall assessments

  Ambulatory facilities that want to dramatically reduce patient falls should focus on a smaller...

• How to master the basics of successful benchmarking

  Editor's note: This is an excerpt from HCPro's Benchmarking Basics: A Resource Guide for Healthcare...

Issue 3, March 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Medication reconciliation, reducing safety risks among top compliance challenges

  Medication reconciliation, reducing patient safety risks, and ensuring the competence of healthcare...

• Physicians to receive bonuses for quality reporting

  For the first time in U.S. history, the government will start paying bonuses to healthcare...

• Accrediting panels unite to promote patient safety

  For the first time ever, competing organizations have joined forces to promote patient safety in...

• How to navigate the basics of QI data reporting

  Vivian Chun, RN, CPHQ, learned in business school how to look at data, how to understand an Excel...

Issue 2, February 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• As Joint Commission eyes apnea as goal, ASCs tackle dangerous disorder

  The Joint Commission may be just now eyeing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as a potential National...

• Allied healthcare professionals must be credentialed

  Editor's note: The AAAHC Standard of the month is a monthly series offered in BOAA. Our AAAHC...

• Disruptive doctors pose threat to patient safety

  Todd Sagin, MD, JD, national medical director for The Greeley Company, has advised medical staffs...

Issue 1, January 1, 2007 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Quality institute award winners highlight falls, asthma projects

  Studies improving falls prevention and asthma evaluation were highlighted in December 2006 as the...

• JCAHO opens field review for 2008 safety goals

  Sleep apnea, anticoagulants, worker fatigue among new topics addressed In December 2006, the...

• Take these seven steps to ensure respirator safety

  Respiratory protection and isolation methods are key issues in preventing the transmission of...