CMS Releases New Outpatient Measures for the Hospital Compare Website
Chicago —
(July 9, 2010)
On July 7, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a new outpatient surgical measure applicable to anesthesiologists to be added to its Hospital Compare website. The measure is called “Antibiotic Timing” and is described by CMS as “Percentage of outpatients having surgery who were given the right kind of antibiotic at the right time (within one hour before surgery) to help prevent infection of surgical wounds.” This measure is already in place for inpatient data and will be used in conjunction to obtain a more comprehensive view of the quality of care being provided in hospitals.
Please visit the links below to access press releases by HHS and CMS regarding these new measures.
HHS Press Release
CMS Press Release
THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF ANESTHESIOLOGISTS
Anesthesiologists: Physicians providing the lifeline of modern medicine. Founded in 1905, the American Society of Anesthesiologists is an educational, research and scientific association with 46,000 members organized to raise and maintain the standards of the medical practice of anesthesiology and improve the care of the patient.
For more information on the field of anesthesiology, visit the American Society of Anesthesiologists Web site at www.asahq.org. For patient information, visit LifeLineToModernMedicine.com
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