In April, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission answered some questions from the Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society about survey updates, rule changes and other helpful resources for ASCs.

As it pertains to surveys, HHSC is not authorized to do any virtual surveys at this time, and in-person visits are expected to meet the established expectations for infection control. All visits for surveys are addressed on a case-by-case basis. When it comes to the top survey citation since COVID, the staff expressed that surveyors have a special focus on infection control practices throughout all CMS-certified providers.

April 26 to April 30, the Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society hosted Infection Control Week. This virtual conference brought together industry experts, discussing the initiatives, expectations and future of infection prevention in ambulatory surgery centers.

On Monday, Lisa McKown, the manager of research and development for Beyond Clean, spoke about public health initiatives to reduce healthcare-associated infections and offered helpful ways the community can get involved to prevent HAIs.

STERIS Associates Discuss Outsourcing Sterilization Process to Prevent Infection
By Tara Phipps

On Thursday, April 22, two STERIS associates discussed offsite reprocessing centers and issues ambulatory surgery centers face with vendor trays at the bi-weekly Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society town hall event.

This year, in particular, keep in mind all that those in the field of nursing do for the world.

May 6 to May 12 is National Nurses Week, a week that many of us can relate to, as we each have stories and personal experiences regarding the dedication of nurses. A nurse myself, I first obtained my LVN license at 19 through the Army. Since, I have worked in skilled rehab, general surgery, telemetry, cardiac stepdown, IMCU, trauma ICU, PACU, PREOP, extended care and the operating room, as well as as a safety officer, director of nursing (ASC), nurse administrator (ASC), ASC developer and consultant. Nursing has taken me to places and offered me the opportunity to meet and help people that I could never have imagined.

Last week, the Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society (TASCS) held its bi-annual Capitol Day virtually. The event was a success that included meetings with a focus group of ambulatory surgery center (ASC) members and various legislative offices, including a welcome kick-off from Senator Dawn Buckingham, MD herself. 

3 Ways Outsourcing the Sterile Processing Department Will Keep Your Total Joints Program Ahead of ASC Trends

At one time it might have been surprising to find out that an Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) functioned without an in-house Sterile Processing Department (SPD). Today, it's common to see centers survive and even thrive without them.

TASCS testifies at the Capitol supporting SB 1763 by Sen. Drew Springer, adding an ASC Representative to the Governor’s EMS and Trauma Advisory Council (GETAC) 

On Tuesday, April 13, 2021, Krista DuRapau, Executive Director for Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society, and Steve Blom, Administrator Texas Orthopedics Surgery Center and past TASCS Board Member, testified to the Texas Senate in support of SB 1763 by Sen. Drew Springer which adds an ASC representative to the Governor’s EMS and Trauma Advisory Council (GETAC).   HB 3605 by Rep. John Turner is the House companion. 

This World Health Day, What Are You Doing To Build A Fairer, Healthier World?
By TASCS Board Member James McClung, Chief Development Officer of Reliant Medical Services

Membership Monday: Digestive Health Center of Allen

On March 4, Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society members attended a virtual town hall, in order to learn best practices on proper incident reporting to Texas Health and Human Services.  

Laura Schneider  RN, Sr. Director of Clinical Services for Amsurg, began by reviewing the requirements of ASC Incident Reporting:

5 Tips For Patient Safety Awareness Week 

Patient Safety Awareness Week encourages people to learn more about healthcare safety, and this year, it takes place March 14–20, 2021. This topic can include the reporting, prevention and reduction of issues that harm patients and others in medical settings.

ASC Accreditation During The COVID-19 Pandemic

The Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society provides members with information and education through bi-weekly virtual town halls. On February 11, members learned what to expect in regards to surveys for accreditation programs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Capitol Day has been postponed to allow centers to recover from the impacts of the Winter Storm Uri. Because each center has been impacted in some way, we appreciate your input on when a new advocacy day would be convenient for your participation.

TAKE THE SURVEY

NEW DATE TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON!

 We apologize for any inconvenience but we are rescheduling next week's event due to the inclement weather and power shortages that our ASCs have experienced this week.

A future date is TBD and will be announced when available. 

In order to provide members with information and education, even in the midst of a pandemic, the Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society (TASCS) has been holding virtual town halls. The latest one took place on Jan. 28 and was about controlled medication logs in ambulatory surgery centers.

It was a focused, brief, yet very informative symposium from two of Texas’ top experts on the topic, Diane Buffington of Surgical Care Affiliates and Chris Dembny of Dembny Pharmacy Consultants LLC.