If you manage an ambulatory surgery center (ASC) or other ambulatory healthcare facility, benchmarking is probably a concern for your organization. Benchmarking is not just a requirement of accrediting agencies such as the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) and The Joint Commission (TJC): it’s a critical component of quality assessment and improvement.
Category: Advice
Are your policies and procedures up to date?
Drug shortages are still coming up quite frequently in facilities. Is your policy and procedure describing what to do when you have a drug shortage up to date? Do you follow the steps noted in your policy? Is your consultant pharmacist helping by providing you with updated regulatory guidance?
Welcome to our newest partners in medication safety!
We are thrilled to welcome our three newest partners, facilities who have asked us to help them enhance patient safety, reduce risks and increase survey success.
Electronic Prescribing and Dispensing
Beginning January 1, 2021, all prescriptions for controlled substances and medical devices in Massachusetts must be issued electronically unless covered by an exception. This week we discuss the steps you need to take to be prepared because even though it is a year away, it is important to take this time to prepare.
Flu season is in full swing…Requirements for Reporting Seasonal Influenza Vaccination
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) recently reminded ambulatory surgery centers of the requirement and steps required to submit healthcare personnel (HCP) influenza data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Healthcare Safety network (NHSN) by May 15, 2020. Is your documentation complete? Are you prepared to comply with DPH and CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) requirements?
It’s National Glaucoma Awareness Month!
It’s National Glaucoma Awareness Month and as your consultant pharmacist we wanted to take this opportunity to remind you about scheduling your regular comprehensive eye exam.
New Year’s Resolution…Avoiding Poor Survey Outcomes.
On a professional level, the new year is a perfect time to renew your commitment to avoiding bad surveys. But New Year’s resolutions are hard to keep, right? Wrong! Although going to the gym at 4am seven days a week may be a resolution that eventually proves too hard to follow, this week we discuss some of the strategies your consultant pharmacist can suggest to help you keep your resolution to avoid poor survey outcomes.
The ambulatory surgery center year in review…
As we approach 2020, we take a few moments to look back at some of the biggest stories of the current year. Each year is extremely busy, and 2019 was no exception. Below we discuss some of the most popular topics of the year. How did we determine popularity? Simple…we decided to focus on the topics that generated the most questions.
New Rhode Island Regulations on Electronic Prescribing of Controlled Substances
For our clients in Rhode Island, the rules/regulations for prescribing controlled substances are about to change. Are you prepared to be compliant?
Is your facility using Intracameral Antibiotics?
Although the debate about whether to use intracameral antibiotics marches on, what is not in question is our collective desire to give patients the best and safest possible outcome. For the facilities contemplating intracameral antibiotics, which drug should you use? What is the best way to prepare it or obtain it? These are all valid questions you should ask.
Use the expertise of your consultant pharmacist to help navigate these difficult, but extremely important decisions. Making the right choice will increase patient safety and reduce risks. The wrong decision could be devastating.