NAMES IN THE NEWS
AAAHC Releases Quality Roadmap 2020
JUNE 2020
A new report from the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) of Skokie, Illinois, analyzes data from 1,488 accreditation surveys, conducted January 1–December 31, 2019, to identify areas of high and low compliance, according to a June 8 press release. While most deficiencies are comparable to previous years’ findings, given the COVID-19 pandemic, the report underscores the need to address standards related to infection prevention, safe injection practices and emergency preparedness, according to the release.
The 2020 AAAHC Quality Roadmap examines accredited organization compliance ratings for current AAAHC standards based on organizations surveyed including ASCs, Medicare deemed status ASCs, office-based surgery practices and primary care settings.
The cumulative findings on high-deficiency standards suggest that facilities continue to face challenges related to quality improvement studies and documentation, according to the release. The most common documentation deficiencies include missing information in the patient clinical record on allergies/sensitivities and no evidence that medication reconciliation was performed, according to the release. The analysis further indicates that other top deficiencies cited in more than 10 percent of survey ratings were consistent with previous years, including those related to credentialing and privileging, infection prevention/safe injection practices, and emergency preparedness.
AAAHC’s analysis shows that AAAHC-accredited organizations demonstrated high compliance with several standards. The facilities surveyed showed improvement in key areas, which are organized by non-Medicare and Medicare deemed status standards, including:
Non-Medicare Deemed Status Standards
- Supporting ongoing professional development
- Transferring a patient’s care from one healthcare professional to another
- Educating operators of newly acquired devices or products to be used for patient care
- Maintaining strict confidentiality on records that contain clinical, social, financial, or other data about a patient, except when otherwise required by law
- Ensuring pharmaceutical services are directed by a qualified licensed provider
Medicare Deemed Status Standards
- Implementing preventive strategies targeting adverse patient events
- Improving the professional competence, skill, and performance of healthcare professionals
- Providing convenient access to reliable, up-to-date information pertinent to the clinical, educational, administrative and research services
- Encouraging healthcare professionals to participate in educational programs and activities
- Ensuring that concern for the cost of care is present throughout the organization
"The AAAHC standards focused on infection prevention and control have never been more important," said Noel Adachi, president and chief executive officer of AAAHC, in the release."Today, healthcare organizations need to be even more vigilant about adherence to these practices to promote employee and patient safety. The Quality Roadmap, along with other AAAHC resources such as educational programs and webinars, is designed to help organizations integrate best practices at their facilities throughout the 1,095 days of the accreditation term.” 