Improved surgical outcomes in ACS NSQIP hospitals

Editor's Note

Participation in the American College of Surgeons, National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) is associated with a reduction in postoperative adverse events, and the magnitude of quality improvement increases with time in the program, this study finds.

Hospitals in the ACS NSQIP program for at least 3 years had a 69% improvement in mortality, 79% improvement in morbidity, and 71% improvement in surgical site infections. 

Background: The American College of Surgeons, National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) surgical quality feedback models are recalibrated every 6 months, and each hospital is given risk-adjusted, hierarchical model, odds ratios that permit comparison to an estimated average NSQIP hospital at a particular point in time.