One of ACC’s key priorities is the development of a comprehensive health systems strategy. At the crux of this strategy is the need to provide hospitals, health systems and other facilities with an integrated, holistic approach to quality improvement across the cardiovascular care spectrum.

To date, the ACC has built the largest suite of hospital and outpatient cardiovascular clinical data registries (NCDR). In addition, as part of the broader Quality Improvement for Institutions umbrella, the College has successfully rolled out quality initiatives like Hospital to Home and Surviving MI to help hospitals close identified gaps in care and improve outcomes. However, gaps still exist in translating available data to improvement in care to patients.

“While some health care systems and physicians have the infrastructure to optimally leverage this data to improve care, there are many who don’t,” says Richard A. Chazal, MD, FACC, president-elect of the ACC. “Accreditation processes – especially those integrated with clinical databases – have the potential to aid physicians and the cardiovascular care team in documenting and improving care.”

It is for this reason that the College welcomed the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care (SCPC) to its fold earlier this year. SCPC has played a pioneering role in the hospital accreditation space over the past 18 years, bringing together diverse stakeholders to improve the clinical processes within facilities for the early assessment, diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease.

“The addition of SCPC to the ACC brings new thinking, new perspectives and new expertise to ongoing efforts to reduce the data burden on facilities by providing a streamlined, continuous approach to quality improvement,” says ACC CEO Shal Jacobovitz.

As the merger is implemented in the coming year, the College is focused on creating a unique hospital system value proposition that includes, but also goes beyond accreditation, to integrate with relevant NCDR registries, quality improvement initiatives and education. “We greatly appreciate the work that has been accomplished over the years in the cardiovascular accreditation space on behalf of our members, practices and patients,” says Chazal. “However, given the many changes in the health care environment – most notably a transition in focus from volume to value – the College needs a solid health system strategy of its own. We are excited by the opportunities to expand our quality offerings across the cardiovascular service line spectrum, including cardiac imaging, catheterization and electrophysiology labs, cardiac rehabilitation, and cardiac surgery.”

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For more information on current accreditation services, visit SCPC.org. For additional information on NCDR registries and quality improvement offerings for hospitals and institutions, visit CVQuality.ACC.org.

Keywords: ACC Publications, ACC Annual Scientific Session, Accreditation, Cardiac Catheterization, Cardiovascular Diseases

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