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FEATURE


in and day out. There is no substitute for that. But even if you already know what the rules are and believe you fol- low them, preparing for a survey is a way of taking a step back and strate- gically evaluating your ASC’s perfor- mance in meeting standards. If you find an area in need of improvement to meet a standard, you can work to make a change that will help your ASC immediately and eventually lead to a better survey performance.”


Year-Round Commitment An important part of an ASC’s prepara- tion for a survey is maintaining a men- tality of continuous preparation, says Ann Brody, CASC, director of busi- ness services for Kendall Endoscopy & Surgery Center in Miami, Florida. “From year to year, you should


Preparing for Surveys Made Easier


Tips on how to pass with flying colors BY ROBERT KURTZ


T


he reason to prepare for regula- tory and accreditation surveys should not be just about passing the survey, says Debra Yoder, RN, direc- tor of clinical services for Surgical Management Professionals, an ASC and surgical hospital management and development company in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. “ASCs should not sit stagnant for


a few years and then try to ramp up their compliance efforts leading up to a survey,” she says. “Not only may an ASC struggle to make the changes necessary in time for a successful sur- vey, but a main objective of surveys is to make sure patients are receiv- ing safe, appropriate care—all of the time. Ramping up compliance efforts goes against the idea of providing great care that follows best practices as an ongoing, daily process.”


From year to year, you should always be in quasi-survey preparation because you have to make sure you are keeping up with changes and always doing things properly.”


— Ann Brody, CASC, Kendall Endoscopy & Surgery Center


There is still value in preparing,


says Alfonso del Granado, compliance officer for Oak Brook, Illinois-based Oak Brook Medical Management, an ASC and medical practice manage- ment company. “You have to be ready to be sur-


veyed at any time,” he says. “All of the standards need to be followed day


16 ASC FOCUS NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015


always be in quasi-survey preparation because you have to make sure you are keeping up with changes and always doing things properly,” she says. “As new regulations and standards come out, it is imperative to review them immediately and work to make sure your ASC meets them.” Del Granado uses a “facility sur-


vey preparation checklist” to help Oak Brook Medical Management’s ASCs maintain compliance with reg- ulations and standards. “The checklist has about 120 items on it that address meeting regulations and standards. At a minimum of every quarter, opti- mally every month, I will randomly walk through each of our centers and check items off the list. If I find some- thing is not compliant, I will make a note. We will correct it on the spot, if possible, but it is always shared with the people in charge. The next time I visit the ASC, if I find the same prob- lem again and it is the same person at fault, then we know it is likely a per- sonnel issue. If it is a different person, then it is an issue with the system that needs addressing.”


Conducting this “mock survey” throughout the year—regardless of


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