How ASCs ace the AAAHC accreditation survey
For an ambulatory surgery center (ASC), earning accreditation can be more than a mark of excellence. The Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) offers Medicare Deemed Status Accreditation, eliminating the need for separate surveys to certify compliance with the Conditions of Participation (CoPs) required by the Centers for Medicare…
How ASCs ace the AAAHC accreditation survey: New handbook, delineation of privileges
Editor’s Note: This page is a companion piece to the main article, How ASCs ace the AAAHC accreditation survey. The posts below cover the latest version of the handbook from the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) and advice on delineation of privileges. Navigating the new handbook The latest…
Judge orders restoration of deleted federal health data
Editor's Note A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to restore health-related webpages and datasets removed under a January executive order, according to a July 29 article in Medscape. The ruling follows a lawsuit by Doctors for America and the city and county of San Francisco, which argued that…
Navigating OR construction design, compliance, approval in a booming ASC market
Editor’s Note: This page is a companion piece to the main article, Proper planning prevents OR construction, renovation cost creep. It brings together four focused updates on OR and ambulatory surgery center (ASC) construction and renovation: Regulatory shifts: The Joint Commission's updated safety and sustainability requirements for hospitals and ASCs, including new…
Blast from the past: Revised data, evolving standards for OSA care in the perioperative setting
An estimated 22 million Americans were believed to have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in 2019, according to data cited in a February 2019 article published by OR Manager. At that time, up to 80% of cases were undiagnosed, and 30% to 40% of the surgical patient population was believed to…
New guidelines address critical airway challenges in obese surgical patients
Editor's Note A multidisciplinary expert panel has released the first evidence-based airway management guidelines specific to patients living with obesity. Published June 5 in Anaesthesia, the 43-point framework—developed by the Society of Obesity and Bariatric Anaesthesia (SOBA)—offers perioperative strategies aimed at improving the safety and consistency of care in a…
The Joint Commission, CHAI collaborate on scalable health AI standards
Editor's Note The Joint Commission and the Coalition for Health AI (CHAI) are partnering to set national standards for responsible artificial intelligence (AI) use in healthcare, according to a June 11 announcement from the organizations. This effort will deliver AI implementation guidance, tools, and a certification program to over 80%…
New GLP-1 guidance urges longer fasting before anesthesia
Editor's Note Patients taking GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) do not need to discontinue these medications before undergoing anesthesia but should follow extended preoperative fasting protocols to reduce aspiration risk, according to a June 5 article in Medscape. As detailed in the article, this recommendation comes from a new multidisciplinary…
Colonoscopy follow-up safe after 75: Study finds age alone shouldn’t guide decisions
Editor's Note Routine colonoscopy surveillance after polyp removal is safe for adults over 75 and should not be ruled out based on age alone, according to a new study from Kaiser Permanente published on May 27 in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology. The research, conducted as part of the National Cancer…
Standards strengthen sterilization, disinfection process chains
Preventing infection from contaminated surgical tools requires attention to every link in a complex chain of processes, from point-of-use pretreatment in the OR to the moment the freshly disinfected or sterilized item arrives at the next patient’s bedside. For those on the front lines, manufacturers’ written instructions for use (IFUs)…
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