AAAHC announces changes to standards
One significant change to the standards for the 2014 handbook for the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) addresses surgical procedures when performed under deep sedation.
"What is obvious is that the new standard will require monitors that are capable of meeting the standard be located in each surgical or procedure room and that the monitoring be documented in the medical record," says Frank J. Chapman, MBA, chief operating officer, Ohio Gastroenterology Group, chair of the AAAHC Standards and Survey Procedures Committee, and AAAHC surveyor. The reference standard can be found in Chapter 9 of the handbook, Anesthesia Care Services, and is Standard 9.Z, which requires monitoring for the presence of exhaled CO2. Deep sedation is defined on the cover page of Chapter 9.
What might be missed is that depending on the progress of a patient’s recovery from anesthesia upon leaving the surgery or procedure room, the requirement to monitor the patient might need to pass with the patient into recovery, Chapman says. This change might not mean every recovery bed would require a monitor, but organizations should review their recovery process and plan accordingly, he says.
Another important change clarifies who in the organization should receive training in the infection control program and clarifies that organizations should have that training documented in the personnel file, Chapman says. Standard 7.I.D. is found in Chapter 7, Infection Prevention and Control.
"The intent of the standard is intentionally broad as all individuals within an organization who have access into areas that could pose an infection control risk should understand and be trained in the organization’s infection control and prevention plan," Chapman says.
All of the standards that have been revised, eliminated, or added can be reviewed at http://www.aaahc.org/en/education/Updates-to-2013-Handbooks. The new standards become effective for organizations submitting applications on or after March 1 or with surveys taking place on or after July 1.
