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OFFICE SURGERY: GUIDELINES FOR PATIENT SAFETY
New York, NY (August 29, 2002) -- According to American Society
for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) statistics, last year 49%
of all cosmetic procedures (surgical and nonsurgical) were performed
in office-based surgical facilities (another 24% of procedures
were performed outside the hospital setting in free-standing surgicenters).
Published data have shown that accredited office-based facilities
have a safety record comparable to that of hospital ambulatory
surgery settings. However, the alarming fact is that most office-based
surgical facilities are unaccredited. ASAPS encourages prospective
patients to make sure their office-based cosmetic surgery meets
the following requirements:
The operating surgeon is certified by the American Board of Plastic
Surgery.
The office-based surgical facility is accredited by a nationally
or state recognized accrediting agency, or is state licensed or
Medicare certified. Nationally recognized accrediting agencies
include the American Society for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery
Facilities (AAAASF), the Joint Commission on Accreditation of
Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), and the Accreditation Association
for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC).
The surgeon has privileges at an accredited acute care hospital
for the specific procedure being performed.
Patients undergoing procedures that involve sedation are appropriately
monitored by registered nursing personnel. If general anesthesia
is used, it is administered by a board-certified anesthesiologist
or certified registered nurse anesthetist.
The emergency equipment and anesthesia monitoring devices in
the surgical facilities are equivalent to those that would be
necessary for the same surgical procedure performed in a hospital
or freestanding ambulatory surgery center.
Provisions are made for hospital admission in the event of unforeseen
complications.
There is a separate recovery area with monitoring equipment equivalent
to that which would be necessary for the same procedure performed
in a hospital or ambulatory surgery facility.
Until the patient is fully recovered, a physician is at the site,
in addition to a registered nurse.
Discharge from the facility is always determined by the responsible
surgeon.
Ensuring patient safety is key to ASAPS’ mission. As of
July 2002, all ASAPS members have agreed to perform surgeries
that require anesthesia (other than local anesthesia and/or minimal
oral or intramuscular tranquilization) only in an accredited,
state-licensed or Medicare-certified facility. It is the Society’s
position, backed by published data, that when the above guidelines
are followed, office-based surgery is a safe, convenient and cost-effective
option for properly selected patients.
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The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) is
the leading organization of plastic surgeons certified by the
American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS) who specialize in cosmetic
surgery of the face and the entire body.
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