The American College of Surgeons (ACS), with the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS), has verified the first three outpatient centers as part of the recently launched Vascular Verification Program (Vascular-VP). To receive verification, these centers have shown a commitment to delivering the best treatment for patients receiving vascular surgical and interventional care in an outpatient setting and to continually improving outcomes.
Vascular-VP is an ACS Quality Program developed with the SVS and leverages the strengths and expertise of the ACS and SVS to provide an evidence-driven, standardized pathway for instituting and growing a quality improvement and clinical care infrastructure within a center's vascular program.
The newly verified outpatient centers are:
- Albany Medical Center Vascular Outpatient Lab (Albany, New York)
- Total Vascular Care (Brooklyn, New York)
- Michigan Vascular Center (Flint, Michigan)
"These three centers have, first as pilot sites and now as verified centers, established themselves as leaders in outpatient vascular care. They have paved the way for many more centers to join us in their journey to continuous improvement by using data and ACS standards and resources to deliver the best possible patient care," said Clifford Y. Ko, MD, MS, MSHS, FACS, FASCRS, Director, ACS Division of Research and Optimal Patient Care.
Meeting the Highest Standards of Care
The Vascular-VP offers two levels of participation for inpatient centers and one level for outpatient centers. All types of verifications are built on a foundation of quality metrics in program, facility, and service resources, as well as data collection and quality improvement activities.
To become verified, these centers have met the standards outlined in the Optimal Resources for Vascular Surgery and Interventional Care - Outpatient Standards, which addresses elements of vascular surgical care and quality.
"Participating in Vascular-VP brought together a lot of our resources, including nursing, vascular lab, office-based lab, front desk, and others, to improve the care we are providing to the vascular patient," said Anil Hingorani, MD, FACS, a vascular surgeon with Total Vascular Care.
Becoming an ACS Surgical Quality Partner
As a Vascular-VP verified center, these centers have also become ACS Surgical Quality Partners. Being an ACS Surgical Quality Partner signifies a center's dedication to consistently improving procedures and approaches while maintaining a critical eye on process at every step. The Surgical Quality Partner designation lets patients know a center is dedicated to quality and relentless self-improvement and has been verified or accredited by the ACS. Patients can trust that the care they receive at Surgical Quality Partner centers adheres to the most rigorous standards in surgical quality. These three centers are ACS Quality Partners by participating in Vascular-VP.
"We welcome these centers into the ACS Quality Programs. They have shown their commitment to delivering the highest quality care, evaluating that care in a rigorous fashion, and dedicating themselves to continuous improvement," said ACS Executive Director & CEO Patricia L. Turner, MD, MBA, FACS.
Centers interested in becoming verified and continuing the quality improvement journey of their vascular service are encouraged to apply online.
