Accreditation for Cardiovascular Excellence (ACE) Issues First-Ever Accreditations for a Hospital System
Washington, DC (PRWEB) February 10, 2016 -- Accreditation for Cardiovascular Excellence (ACE) has, for the first time, started the process of accrediting all cardiac catheterization facilities within a single hospital system. This distinction is reported in an article in the February 2016 issue of Cath Lab Digest, entitled, “First-Ever Cardiac Catheterization Lab Accreditation Program for a Hospital System,” which summarizes the initial experience Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI) Omaha (NE) utilized to initiate ACE accreditation at the first five of its cardiac catheterization laboratories.
CHI Health selected ACE as its accrediting body because of its belief “that ACE would provide the broadest, most comprehensive evaluation of CHI’s catheterization laboratory operations and procedures,” according to lead author Jeffrey S. Carstens, M.D., cardiovascular executive medical director at CHI Health-Omaha. Dr. Carstens also cited ACE’s “holistic” approach to “standardizing policies, procedures and equipment across multi-hospital health systems” as a factor in selecting ACE.
In the Cath Lab Digest article, the CHI Health-Omaha team lauded ACE for initiating a productive process regarding the specific criteria for accreditation, and for helping to identify opportunities for further standardization of care standards and best practices, while eliminating variations. “We feel this collaborative process was driven by a shared motivation to succeed and the creation by ACE of a learning environment,” wrote Dr. Carstens and colleagues. “ACE has been a valuable resource in validating a high level of integration within our cardiac catheterization laboratory facilities.”
Having secured accreditation for the first five of its cardiac catheterization facilities in the intital effort, CHI Health-Omaha is now coaching its sister facilities in accordance with CHI’s goal of attaining ACE accreditation for all of its cardiac catheterization laboratories. “ACE accreditation has made us more conscientious about optimizing the patient experience through ongoing monitoring of processes and policies that we have implemented to comply with ACE standards, particularly those that are directly relevant to cardiac catheterization and percutaneous coronary intervention,” concludes Dr. Carstens.
ACE On the Move
Be sure to stop by the ACE booth at the American College of Cardiology's 2016 Cardiovascular Summit: Solutions for Thriving in a Time of Change, which will take place February 18-20 at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Feel free to ask us how your hospital can benefit from ACE accreditation!
Additionally, come see ACE Executive Director Mary Heisler, RN, speak at CRT16, the annual meeting of Cardiovascular Research Technologies (CRT) on February 21 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. Mary will discuss “Invasive Cardiovascular Laboratory Accreditation” from 3:30 to 3:40 pm in the Regency Room, as part of the Nurses & Technologists Track, Session V: Accreditation, Education, and Quality. We hope to see you there!
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[1] 2 http://www.dicardiology.com/article/defining-value-cardiac-catheterization-lab-accreditation
About Accreditation for Cardiovascular Excellence
ACE is the leader in and the only provider of full accreditation for facilities that provide cardiovascular care. We have unique and proven experience in accrediting large hospital systems and peer-reviewed data on improving outcomes in cardiac catheterization laboratories. Cardiac cath lab accreditation is our business, and we are an independent organization sponsored by the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI). ACE quality review and accreditation services play a critical role in continuous quality improvement programs, structured reporting and documentation. Join us. Learn more at http://www.cvexcel.org.
Mary Heisler, RN, BA, ACE Accreditation for Cardiovascular Excellence, http://www.cvexcel.org, +1 (202) 657-6859, [email protected]
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