ASGE Recognizes 68 Endoscopy Units For Quality And Safety Through Endoscopy Unit Recognition Program

Main Category: GastroIntestinal / Gastroenterology
Also Included In: Medical Students / Training
Article Date: 09 May 2009 - 0:00 PDT

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The American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) has recognized 68 endoscopy units as part of its new program specifically dedicated to promoting quality in endoscopy, in all settings where it is practiced in the United States. The ASGE Endoscopy Unit Recognition Program honors endoscopy units that follow the ASGE guidelines on privileging, quality assurance, endoscopy reprocessing and CDC infection control guidelines. To date, 124 endoscopy units have been recognized by ASGE.

"ASGE continues to receive an outstanding response to the program, and we are delighted to be recognizing recipients from 68 endoscopy units, who are working hard everyday to provide high-quality care to their patients in a safe environment," said Douglas O. Faigel, MD, FASGE, chairman, ASGE Quality Assurance Task Force. "We are proud to acknowledge these ASGE members through our Endoscopy Unit Recognition Program for their commitment to promoting the highest standards of safety and quality."

An important component of the program is an educational course that thoroughly reviews related guidelines. Honorees attended either the "Improving Quality and Safety in Your Endoscopy Unit" course held in Oak Brook, Ill., in October 2008, or the course held in Las Vegas, Nev., in February 2009.

Upon completion of the program, units receive an ASGE "Certificate of Recognition" for promoting quality in endoscopy. This symbol can be displayed to let patients and referring physicians know that the endoscopy unit is dedicated to delivering high-quality endoscopic care and has received specialized training around these principles.

New ASGE Endoscopy Unit Recognition Program Honorees

• Advanced Endoscopy Center, Bronx, NY
  
  
• Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA
  
  
• Alliance Endoscopy Center, Metairie, LA
  
  
• Austin Endoscopy Center I, LLP, Austin, TX
  
  
• Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital, St. Louis, MO
  
  
• Bay Area Houston Endoscopy, Webster, TX
  
  
• Berkshire Endoscopy Center, LLC, Pittsfield, MA
  
  
• Berkshire Medical Center, Pittsfield, MA
  
  
• Charlotte Surgery Center, Port Charlotte, FL
  
  
• Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH
  
  
• Community Center for Digestive Care, Anderson, IN
  
  
• Digestive Health Center, Akron, OH
  
  
• Endoscopic Imaging Center, Overland Park, KS
  
  
• Endoscopy Center at Bainbridge, Chagrin Falls, OH
  
  
• Endoscopy Center of North Baltimore, LLC, Towson, MD
  
  
• Endoscopy Center of the Upstate, Greenville, SC
  
  
• Endoscopy Unit Rutland Regional Medical Center, Rutland, VT
  
  
• Endo-Surgi Center, Union, NJ
  
  
• Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA
  
  
• Gastroenterology Associates, P.A., Hickory, NC
  
  
• Gastroenterology Consultants, Virginia Beach, VA
  
  
• Gastroenterology Group of Rochester, Rochester, NY
  
  
• Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
  
  
• Great Neck Endoscopy, Great Neck, NJ
  
  
• Gulf Coast Endoscopy Center, Fort Meyers, FL
  
  
• Highland Endoscopy Center, Malvern, PA
  
  
• Huron Gastro, Ypsilanti, MI
  
  
• Kettering Hospital GI Unit, Kettering, OH
  
  
• Kinston Medical Specialists P.A., Kinston, NC
  
  
• Lake Forest Endoscopy Center, LLC, Lake Forest, IL
  
  
• Lincoln Endoscopy Center, LLC, Lincoln, NE
  
  
• Maimonides Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY
  
  
• Meadowview Regional Medical Center, Maysville, KY
  
  
• Medical Center Endoscopy, LLP, Houston, TX
  
  
• Medical University of South Carolina Medical Center, Charleston, SC
  
  
• Meridian Surgery Center, LLC, Meridian, MS
  
  
• Methodist Endoscopy Center, San Antonio, TX
  
  
• Morristown Memorial Hospital, Morristown, NJ
  
  
• Mountain View Endoscopy Center, Mountain View, CA
  
  
• Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR
  
  
• Pasadena Endoscopy Center, Inc., Pasadena, CA
  
  
• Permian Gastroenterology Associates, Odessa, TX
  
  
• Reno Endoscopy Center, LLC, Reno, NV
  
  
• Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Endoscopy Department, New Brunswick, NJ
  
  
• Robertson Surgical Center, LLC, Beverly Hills, CA
  
  
• Saint Louis University, Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Saint Louis, MO
  
  
• Salem Gastroenterology Associates, P.A. Salem Endoscopy Center, Winston Salem, NC
  
  
• Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, Santa Barbara, CA
  
  
• Santa Barbara Endoscopy Center, Santa Barbara, CA
  
  
• Sierra Endoscopy Center, Inc., Grass Valley, CA
  
  
• Southern California Medical Gastroenterology Group, Inc., Santa Monica, CA
  
  
• Southwest Endoscopy, Albuquerque, NM
  
  
• Sutter Maternity and Surgery Center, Santa Cruz, CA
  
  
• Tacoma Digestive Disease Center/Harbor Endoscopy Center, Tacoma, WA
  
  
• The Endoscopy Center, Knoxville, TN
  
  
• The Endoscopy Center of West Central Ohio, LLC, Lima, OH
  
  
• The EndoSurgery Center, Petaluma, CA
  
  
• The Lawrence Hospital Center, Bronxville, NY
  
  
• The Maureen Egan Gastroenterology Unit, Newton Lower Falls, MA
  
  
• The Outpatient Surgery Center of Hilton, Hilton Head Island, SC
  
  
• Trinity Mother Francis Endoscopy Center, Tyler, TX
  
  
• United Medical Endoscopy Center, Lancaster, CA
  
  
• University of Kansas Hospital, Kansas City, KS
  
  
• Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, WA
  
  
• Washington Square Endoscopy Center, Philadelphia, PA
  
  
• Wellbrook Endoscopy Center, Conyers, GA
  
  
• Westchester Endoscopy and Motility, PLLC, Bronxville, NY
  
  
• Wichita Falls Endoscopy, Center Wichita Falls, TX

About the Program

To successfully complete the program and receive a Certificate of Recognition, a center must show proof of successful and current accreditation by a recognized accrediting body (AAAHC, Joint Commission); sign an attestation affirming that certain ASGE and CDC guidelines are adopted as minimum requirements of the unit policy; have a representative of the unit complete the ASGE Recognition Course, "Improving Quality and Safety In Your Endoscopy Unit;" and submit the application fee(s). The Certificate of Recognition award is granted for a three-year renewable period.

The program is applicable to all settings in the United States where endoscopy is practiced, including office-based endoscopy units, hospital-based endoscopy units, and stand-alone ambulatory endoscopy or surgery centers.

As a benefit of successfully completing the program, endoscopy units will receive the ASGE Certificate of Recognition for Promoting Quality in Endoscopy, patient brochures - Ensuring the Safety of Your Endoscopic Procedure, access to advice from reprocessing experts and more.

ASGE and Quality

The program course is being repeated in 2009. To register, as well as for a list of full requirements and benefits of the Endoscopy Unit Recognition Program, log on to http://www.asge.org/.

COURSE DETAILS:

Improving Quality and Safety in Your Endoscopy Unit
October 17, 2009
ASGE Institute for Training & Technology
Oak Brook, Ill.

December 2009 (Date TBD)
NYSGE Meeting, New York

For more details on registering for these courses as they become available, go to http://www.asge.org/.

Source:
Anne Brownsey
American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy

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