September/October 2011 Issue of Becker's OR Clinical Quality Supplement

8 Problem Areas for ASCs in a Medicare Survey

John J. Goehle, COO of Ambulatory Healthcare Strategies in Rochester and Albany, N.Y., is author of "The Survey Guide for ASCs - A Guide to the CMS Conditions for Coverage & Interpretive Guidelines for Ambulatory Surgery Centers." Click to continue »

10 Steps to a Thorough Physician Credentialing Process

Credentialing physicians for a surgery center is quite an undertaking, considering the amount of information that must be double-checked before a provider is accepted into the facility. Click to continue »

5 Tangible Benefits of an Effective Risk Management Program

There's an element of risk management in almost every function and process that occurs in an ambulatory surgery center, says Carol Hiatt, RN, LHRM, CASC, a licensed risk manager in Florida and Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care surveyor who recently joined the consulting team of Healthcare Consultants International, a subsidiary of AAAHC. Click to continue »

6 Steps to Reduce Surgical Site Infections in Surgery Centers

Peggy SaBell, RN, MS, CIC, regional director of infection prevention for Kaiser Permanente in Denver, Colo., and spokesperson for the Association for Prevention in Infection Control, shares six ways surgery centers can reduce surgical site infections. Click to continue »

5 Current Trends in Patient Safety

The following article is written by Jeff Terry, general manager and managing principal of clinical operations at GE Healthcare Performance Solutions; Patricia Daughenbaugh RN, MSN, MBA, who leads GE Healthcare Performance Solutions Clinical Excellence consulting practice; and Kathy Martin, MBA, managing director of GE Patient Safety Organization. Click to continue »

Loaner Instrumentation Checklist: 10 Steps to Follow

Ambulatory surgery centers, like most facilities, cannot typically afford to purchase all of the instruments needed for the wide-range of procedures they perform. Click to continue »

Why You Should Test Your Surgical Instrument Washer Weekly

The following article is written by Matt Smith, marketing analyst for Healthmark Industries Co. Click to continue »

6 Steps to Prevent Wrong-Site Surgery

In June, the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare reported that despite intense efforts to curb wrong-site surgery, the adverse event still occurs approximately 40 times a week nationwide. Click to continue »

Infection Prevention in the Outpatient Setting: Q&A With CDC’s Dr. Melissa Schaefer

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released the Guide to Infection Prevention for Outpatient Settings: Minimum Expectations for Safe Care. Melissa Schaefer, MD, medical officer in CDC's Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion, discusses how outpatient facilities can maximize the benefits of the guide and CDC's increasing focus on outpatient care. Click to continue »

10 Things to Know About Waste Management and Preventing Surgical Site Infections

Linda R. Greene, RN, MPS, CIC, director, infection prevention and control for the Rochester (N.Y.) General Health System and APIC board member, discusses 10 things for organizations to know about surgical waste removal systems, and steps to take to prevent bloodborne pathogen transmission to healthcare workers and physicians and surgical site infections for patients. Click to continue »

7 Surprising OSHA and Waste Management Rules and Regulations

The Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) places significant emphasis on organizations meeting OSHA regulations and performing proper waste management. Click to continue »