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A Message from the Executive Director: ACS continues to take on the issues of concern to surgeons and their patients
I am pleased to once again submit an annual report for publication in ACS Surgery News. The American College of Surgeons (ACS) had a productive year in 2017 and looks forward to seeing a range of new programs evolve in 2018.
Physician payment
A health policy issue of considerable concern to ACS Fellows is the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ efforts to implement the payment reforms in the Medicare Access and CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program) Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015. Specifically, 2017 was the transition year for implementation of the Quality Payment Program’s (QPP’s) Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), and MIPS data collected in 2017 will be used to determine annual payment updates in 2019.
In 2018, the second year of MIPS, the penalty for nonparticipation has increased to 5 percent from 4 percent. Over time, the penalty for nonparticpation or poor performance will continue to rise. The College has created a variety of resources to assist Fellows in their efforts to comply with MIPS, which explain the purpose and structure of the MIPS program and help guide surgeons in choosing and achieving the goal that is right for their individual practice. These tools can be found on the ACS website at facs.org/qpp.
In addition to MIPS, the QPP calls for the establishment of Alternative Payment Models (APMs). The College has worked with thought leaders at Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, to develop the ACS-Brandeis Advanced APM. In 2017, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services reviewed the proposal and made recommendations for improvement. Efforts to develop the model continue, and the ACS is working with private insurers and entities that may implement the APM model once available.
Education
The College is leading a significant effort to address the needs of surgeons who are looking to update their skills. The Steering Committee for Retraining and Retooling of Practicing Surgeons is working to define standards and establish a national infrastructure to achieve optimal outcomes. The ACS Accredited Education Institutes are at the core of this infrastructure.
At Clinical Congress 2017, we launched the ACS Academy of Master Surgeon Educators. The goals of the academy are to recognize master surgeon educators, advance the science and practice of leading-edge surgical education and training, foster innovation and collaboration, support faculty development and recognition, and underscore the importance of surgical education and training.
Also at Clinical Congress, the ACS Committee on Ethics unveiled Ethical Issues in Surgical Care, a landmark resource that defines a framework for the field of surgical ethics as it has evolved over the last decade. The book is organized into four sections that address the broad areas of general consideration, the surgeon-patient relationship, the surgeon and the surgical profession, and the surgeon and society.
Quality
The College released Optimal Resources for Surgical Quality and Safety, also known as the “red book,” in July 2017.This manual provides a guide for surgical quality leaders seeking to improve quality and safety in their institutions, departments, and practices. Efforts are under way to develop adjunctive or integrated resources/standards and to potentially establish a Surgical Quality Verification Program.
The red book was released at the 2017 ACS Quality and Safety Conference, formerly the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) Annual Conference, in New York, NY. The conference, which focused on a broad range of ACS Quality Programs, boasted a record-breaking attendance of more than 1,800 attendees.
The new Surgeon Specific Registry was the first ACS database to launch as part of the College’s integrated registry of the future, which ultimately will allow users to share relevant quality data across individual ACS Quality Programs, such as ACS NSQIP and the Trauma Quality Improvement Program (TQIP®).
Other new quality initiatives include the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Safety Program for Improving Surgical Care and Recovery (ISCR), which the ACS is conducting in collaboration with Johns Hopkins Medicine Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality, Baltimore, MD. This program supports hospitals in implementing perioperative evidence-based pathways to improve clinical outcomes, reduce hospital length of stay, and improve the patient experience.
The ACS also has become the new home of Strong for Surgery, originally developed by surgeons in Washington State. This program empowers hospitals and clinics to integrate checklists into the preoperative phase of care.
In addition, the ACS was awarded a three-year, multimillion dollar R01 grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. ACS Past-President L.D. Britt, MD, MPH, DSc(Hon), FACS, FCCM, FRCSEng(Hon), FRCSEd(Hon), FWACS(Hon), FRCSI(Hon), FCS(SA)(Hon), FRCSGlasg(Hon), is the principal investigator on this award, which is aimed at eliminating variances in access to surgical care.
Trauma
The Committee on Trauma (COT), in collaboration with military partners and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), hosted a conference in April 2017 to advance the recommendations in the National Academies on Science, Engineering, and Medicine report, A National Trauma Care System: Integrating Military and Civilian Trauma Systems to Achieve Zero Preventable Deaths after Injury. The meeting brought together approximately 170 trauma care professionals with the goal of creating the framework for a National Trauma Care System Action Plan.
In light of recent tragedies and the ongoing public debate over how to stop the continuing violence at our nation’s schools, churches, and other public places, the COT Injury Prevention and Control Committee (IPCC) is advocating for a consensus-based, public health/trauma system approach to firearm injury prevention. Furthermore, at its February 2018 meeting the ACS Board of Regents unanimously approved a plan to expand the College’s focus from the successful Stop the Bleed® program to a broader prevention initiative focused on strategies that include research, advocacy, and strategic collaborations. An action plan was in development at press time.
ACS leadership
The ACS Board of Governors (B/G) continues to implement initiatives through its Pillars and Workgroups. Specific examples from this past year include the release of a white paper on out-of-network billing; production of the biannual e-newsletter, The Cutting Edge; conduct of the 2017 Board of Governors Annual Survey, which focuses on the Stop the Bleed campaign, the opioid crisis, work-related injuries/surgical ergonomics, and advanced practice providers in surgery; and development of a standardized letter of recommendation for applicants to surgery training programs.
The ACS Board of Regents approved and updated a number of statements in the last 12 months. New statements cover several topics of concern to the Fellowship, including gender salary equity, the use of anesthetics and sedation drugs in children and pregnant women, the opioid abuse epidemic, lithium batteries, opioids and motor vehicle crash prevention, maintaining surgical access with a locum tenens surgeon, social media, the Uniform Emergency Volunteer Health Practitioners Act, credentialing and privileging, and medical students and the electronic health record.
As these few examples demonstrate, the ACS is constantly moving forward to offer surgeons and the other members of the patient care team the tools, resources, and educational opportunities they need to succeed in practice and to provide optimal patient care. As always, you are encouraged to contact the ACS leadership, and let us know how we can best serve you.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the ACS, Chicago, IL.
I am pleased to once again submit an annual report for publication in ACS Surgery News. The American College of Surgeons (ACS) had a productive year in 2017 and looks forward to seeing a range of new programs evolve in 2018.
Physician payment
A health policy issue of considerable concern to ACS Fellows is the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ efforts to implement the payment reforms in the Medicare Access and CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program) Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015. Specifically, 2017 was the transition year for implementation of the Quality Payment Program’s (QPP’s) Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), and MIPS data collected in 2017 will be used to determine annual payment updates in 2019.
In 2018, the second year of MIPS, the penalty for nonparticipation has increased to 5 percent from 4 percent. Over time, the penalty for nonparticpation or poor performance will continue to rise. The College has created a variety of resources to assist Fellows in their efforts to comply with MIPS, which explain the purpose and structure of the MIPS program and help guide surgeons in choosing and achieving the goal that is right for their individual practice. These tools can be found on the ACS website at facs.org/qpp.
In addition to MIPS, the QPP calls for the establishment of Alternative Payment Models (APMs). The College has worked with thought leaders at Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, to develop the ACS-Brandeis Advanced APM. In 2017, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services reviewed the proposal and made recommendations for improvement. Efforts to develop the model continue, and the ACS is working with private insurers and entities that may implement the APM model once available.
Education
The College is leading a significant effort to address the needs of surgeons who are looking to update their skills. The Steering Committee for Retraining and Retooling of Practicing Surgeons is working to define standards and establish a national infrastructure to achieve optimal outcomes. The ACS Accredited Education Institutes are at the core of this infrastructure.
At Clinical Congress 2017, we launched the ACS Academy of Master Surgeon Educators. The goals of the academy are to recognize master surgeon educators, advance the science and practice of leading-edge surgical education and training, foster innovation and collaboration, support faculty development and recognition, and underscore the importance of surgical education and training.
Also at Clinical Congress, the ACS Committee on Ethics unveiled Ethical Issues in Surgical Care, a landmark resource that defines a framework for the field of surgical ethics as it has evolved over the last decade. The book is organized into four sections that address the broad areas of general consideration, the surgeon-patient relationship, the surgeon and the surgical profession, and the surgeon and society.
Quality
The College released Optimal Resources for Surgical Quality and Safety, also known as the “red book,” in July 2017.This manual provides a guide for surgical quality leaders seeking to improve quality and safety in their institutions, departments, and practices. Efforts are under way to develop adjunctive or integrated resources/standards and to potentially establish a Surgical Quality Verification Program.
The red book was released at the 2017 ACS Quality and Safety Conference, formerly the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) Annual Conference, in New York, NY. The conference, which focused on a broad range of ACS Quality Programs, boasted a record-breaking attendance of more than 1,800 attendees.
The new Surgeon Specific Registry was the first ACS database to launch as part of the College’s integrated registry of the future, which ultimately will allow users to share relevant quality data across individual ACS Quality Programs, such as ACS NSQIP and the Trauma Quality Improvement Program (TQIP®).
Other new quality initiatives include the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Safety Program for Improving Surgical Care and Recovery (ISCR), which the ACS is conducting in collaboration with Johns Hopkins Medicine Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality, Baltimore, MD. This program supports hospitals in implementing perioperative evidence-based pathways to improve clinical outcomes, reduce hospital length of stay, and improve the patient experience.
The ACS also has become the new home of Strong for Surgery, originally developed by surgeons in Washington State. This program empowers hospitals and clinics to integrate checklists into the preoperative phase of care.
In addition, the ACS was awarded a three-year, multimillion dollar R01 grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. ACS Past-President L.D. Britt, MD, MPH, DSc(Hon), FACS, FCCM, FRCSEng(Hon), FRCSEd(Hon), FWACS(Hon), FRCSI(Hon), FCS(SA)(Hon), FRCSGlasg(Hon), is the principal investigator on this award, which is aimed at eliminating variances in access to surgical care.
Trauma
The Committee on Trauma (COT), in collaboration with military partners and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), hosted a conference in April 2017 to advance the recommendations in the National Academies on Science, Engineering, and Medicine report, A National Trauma Care System: Integrating Military and Civilian Trauma Systems to Achieve Zero Preventable Deaths after Injury. The meeting brought together approximately 170 trauma care professionals with the goal of creating the framework for a National Trauma Care System Action Plan.
In light of recent tragedies and the ongoing public debate over how to stop the continuing violence at our nation’s schools, churches, and other public places, the COT Injury Prevention and Control Committee (IPCC) is advocating for a consensus-based, public health/trauma system approach to firearm injury prevention. Furthermore, at its February 2018 meeting the ACS Board of Regents unanimously approved a plan to expand the College’s focus from the successful Stop the Bleed® program to a broader prevention initiative focused on strategies that include research, advocacy, and strategic collaborations. An action plan was in development at press time.
ACS leadership
The ACS Board of Governors (B/G) continues to implement initiatives through its Pillars and Workgroups. Specific examples from this past year include the release of a white paper on out-of-network billing; production of the biannual e-newsletter, The Cutting Edge; conduct of the 2017 Board of Governors Annual Survey, which focuses on the Stop the Bleed campaign, the opioid crisis, work-related injuries/surgical ergonomics, and advanced practice providers in surgery; and development of a standardized letter of recommendation for applicants to surgery training programs.
The ACS Board of Regents approved and updated a number of statements in the last 12 months. New statements cover several topics of concern to the Fellowship, including gender salary equity, the use of anesthetics and sedation drugs in children and pregnant women, the opioid abuse epidemic, lithium batteries, opioids and motor vehicle crash prevention, maintaining surgical access with a locum tenens surgeon, social media, the Uniform Emergency Volunteer Health Practitioners Act, credentialing and privileging, and medical students and the electronic health record.
As these few examples demonstrate, the ACS is constantly moving forward to offer surgeons and the other members of the patient care team the tools, resources, and educational opportunities they need to succeed in practice and to provide optimal patient care. As always, you are encouraged to contact the ACS leadership, and let us know how we can best serve you.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the ACS, Chicago, IL.
I am pleased to once again submit an annual report for publication in ACS Surgery News. The American College of Surgeons (ACS) had a productive year in 2017 and looks forward to seeing a range of new programs evolve in 2018.
Physician payment
A health policy issue of considerable concern to ACS Fellows is the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ efforts to implement the payment reforms in the Medicare Access and CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program) Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015. Specifically, 2017 was the transition year for implementation of the Quality Payment Program’s (QPP’s) Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), and MIPS data collected in 2017 will be used to determine annual payment updates in 2019.
In 2018, the second year of MIPS, the penalty for nonparticipation has increased to 5 percent from 4 percent. Over time, the penalty for nonparticpation or poor performance will continue to rise. The College has created a variety of resources to assist Fellows in their efforts to comply with MIPS, which explain the purpose and structure of the MIPS program and help guide surgeons in choosing and achieving the goal that is right for their individual practice. These tools can be found on the ACS website at facs.org/qpp.
In addition to MIPS, the QPP calls for the establishment of Alternative Payment Models (APMs). The College has worked with thought leaders at Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, to develop the ACS-Brandeis Advanced APM. In 2017, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services reviewed the proposal and made recommendations for improvement. Efforts to develop the model continue, and the ACS is working with private insurers and entities that may implement the APM model once available.
Education
The College is leading a significant effort to address the needs of surgeons who are looking to update their skills. The Steering Committee for Retraining and Retooling of Practicing Surgeons is working to define standards and establish a national infrastructure to achieve optimal outcomes. The ACS Accredited Education Institutes are at the core of this infrastructure.
At Clinical Congress 2017, we launched the ACS Academy of Master Surgeon Educators. The goals of the academy are to recognize master surgeon educators, advance the science and practice of leading-edge surgical education and training, foster innovation and collaboration, support faculty development and recognition, and underscore the importance of surgical education and training.
Also at Clinical Congress, the ACS Committee on Ethics unveiled Ethical Issues in Surgical Care, a landmark resource that defines a framework for the field of surgical ethics as it has evolved over the last decade. The book is organized into four sections that address the broad areas of general consideration, the surgeon-patient relationship, the surgeon and the surgical profession, and the surgeon and society.
Quality
The College released Optimal Resources for Surgical Quality and Safety, also known as the “red book,” in July 2017.This manual provides a guide for surgical quality leaders seeking to improve quality and safety in their institutions, departments, and practices. Efforts are under way to develop adjunctive or integrated resources/standards and to potentially establish a Surgical Quality Verification Program.
The red book was released at the 2017 ACS Quality and Safety Conference, formerly the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) Annual Conference, in New York, NY. The conference, which focused on a broad range of ACS Quality Programs, boasted a record-breaking attendance of more than 1,800 attendees.
The new Surgeon Specific Registry was the first ACS database to launch as part of the College’s integrated registry of the future, which ultimately will allow users to share relevant quality data across individual ACS Quality Programs, such as ACS NSQIP and the Trauma Quality Improvement Program (TQIP®).
Other new quality initiatives include the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Safety Program for Improving Surgical Care and Recovery (ISCR), which the ACS is conducting in collaboration with Johns Hopkins Medicine Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality, Baltimore, MD. This program supports hospitals in implementing perioperative evidence-based pathways to improve clinical outcomes, reduce hospital length of stay, and improve the patient experience.
The ACS also has become the new home of Strong for Surgery, originally developed by surgeons in Washington State. This program empowers hospitals and clinics to integrate checklists into the preoperative phase of care.
In addition, the ACS was awarded a three-year, multimillion dollar R01 grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. ACS Past-President L.D. Britt, MD, MPH, DSc(Hon), FACS, FCCM, FRCSEng(Hon), FRCSEd(Hon), FWACS(Hon), FRCSI(Hon), FCS(SA)(Hon), FRCSGlasg(Hon), is the principal investigator on this award, which is aimed at eliminating variances in access to surgical care.
Trauma
The Committee on Trauma (COT), in collaboration with military partners and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), hosted a conference in April 2017 to advance the recommendations in the National Academies on Science, Engineering, and Medicine report, A National Trauma Care System: Integrating Military and Civilian Trauma Systems to Achieve Zero Preventable Deaths after Injury. The meeting brought together approximately 170 trauma care professionals with the goal of creating the framework for a National Trauma Care System Action Plan.
In light of recent tragedies and the ongoing public debate over how to stop the continuing violence at our nation’s schools, churches, and other public places, the COT Injury Prevention and Control Committee (IPCC) is advocating for a consensus-based, public health/trauma system approach to firearm injury prevention. Furthermore, at its February 2018 meeting the ACS Board of Regents unanimously approved a plan to expand the College’s focus from the successful Stop the Bleed® program to a broader prevention initiative focused on strategies that include research, advocacy, and strategic collaborations. An action plan was in development at press time.
ACS leadership
The ACS Board of Governors (B/G) continues to implement initiatives through its Pillars and Workgroups. Specific examples from this past year include the release of a white paper on out-of-network billing; production of the biannual e-newsletter, The Cutting Edge; conduct of the 2017 Board of Governors Annual Survey, which focuses on the Stop the Bleed campaign, the opioid crisis, work-related injuries/surgical ergonomics, and advanced practice providers in surgery; and development of a standardized letter of recommendation for applicants to surgery training programs.
The ACS Board of Regents approved and updated a number of statements in the last 12 months. New statements cover several topics of concern to the Fellowship, including gender salary equity, the use of anesthetics and sedation drugs in children and pregnant women, the opioid abuse epidemic, lithium batteries, opioids and motor vehicle crash prevention, maintaining surgical access with a locum tenens surgeon, social media, the Uniform Emergency Volunteer Health Practitioners Act, credentialing and privileging, and medical students and the electronic health record.
As these few examples demonstrate, the ACS is constantly moving forward to offer surgeons and the other members of the patient care team the tools, resources, and educational opportunities they need to succeed in practice and to provide optimal patient care. As always, you are encouraged to contact the ACS leadership, and let us know how we can best serve you.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the ACS, Chicago, IL.
ACS: Ensuring the integrity of the profession and the quality of patient care
With a new administration and Congress in place, as well as many exciting internal changes, the American College of Surgeons (ACS) is looking forward to an exciting year ahead.
Quality improvement
Making certain that surgeons have the tools they need to measure and evaluate their performance is a key mission of the College. To this end, we have initiated the database integration system, which will bring together under a single platform the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®), National Cancer Database, National Trauma Data Bank, and Surgeon Specific Registry (SSRTM). This project, which is being implemented incrementally, will make it easier for surgeons to meet American Board of Surgery (ABS) Maintenance of Certification requirements and Medicare payment mandates.
Furthermore, the College intends to publish an ACS quality manual this year. This comprehensive guidebook will outline strategies and resources needed to ensure the delivery of optimal surgical care.
Advocacy
The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), enacted in 2015, repealed the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) methodology that was used for many years to calculate Medicare physician reimbursement. Replacing the SGR is the Quality Payment Program (QPP), which advances a longstanding policy goal of basing payment on value rather than on volume.
Surgeons can participate in the QPP through one of two pathways—the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) or the Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs). MIPS is the default QPP pathway most physicians will use initially. The College has taken a number of steps to ensure that surgeons are able to comply with MIPS’ reporting requirements and performance measures. For example, we have created an online Resource Center (https://www.facs.org/advocacy/qpp) for surgeons seeking information about the QPP. In addition, we are working with health policy experts at Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, to propose surgical APMs.
We anticipate that the new presidential administration and Republican-controlled Congress will leave QPP untouched—at least for a while. However, we also speculate that they will attempt to repeal at least some provisions in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The ACS intends to play an active role in what is certain to be a highly charged debate—just as we did when the ACA was under consideration. As we enter this discussion, we will advocate for the policies that we believe will have the greatest benefit toward ensuring that all surgical patients have access to necessary services. We will not be swayed by politics but rather, will promote our enduring principles for health care reform: quality improvement and patient safety, patient access to surgical care, reduction of health care costs, and medical liability reform.
Education
Surgical education and training have been at the heart of the College’s mission since the organization’s inception. We believe the ACS’ education and training programs are the cornerstones of excellence, transform possibilities into realities, and instill the joy of lifelong learning.
Of particular concern in recent years have been reports that a significant percentage of general surgeon residency graduates leave training feeling insecure about their ability to perform advanced procedures and to manage a practice. In response, the College launched the Transition to Practice in General Surgery program, which provides opportunities for recently graduated residents to engage in a period of mentored practice.
In addition, the College has been working with other stakeholders, including the ABS, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, the Association of Program Directors in Surgery, and the Residency Review Committee for Surgery, to develop a road map to secure the future of general surgery. Concepts discussed in these meetings include the following:
- Medical student boot camps
- Further training after five years of general surgery residency
- Modification to duty-hour requirements
- Competency-based education and skills assessment
- Guidelines for self-assessment during residency
- A faculty development requirement
- Career-long record keeping, starting in medical school
Today’s residents are tomorrow’s surgeons. Given the aging population that will be seeking their services, it is imperative that the House of Surgery take responsibility for ensuring that graduates of general surgery training programs have the full range of skills and the confidence necessary to care for these vulnerable patients.
Member services and communication
Our Member Services area continues to develop programs that are designed to encourage surgeon engagement and well-being.
The 2017 Leadership & Advocacy Summit, May 6-9 in Washington, DC, will address such topics as team building, managing critical situations, burnout, common mistakes in leadership, and domestic volunteerism. During the advocacy portion of the meeting, members will have opportunities to flex their leadership muscle and advocate on their patients’ behalf.
The College recognizes that surgeons need to be mentally, emotionally, and physically healthy to provide optimal care to their patients. With this thought in mind, the ACS invites all active, dues-paying members to use the Physician Well-Being Index. This validated screening tool provides an opportunity for surgeons to better understand their overall well-being and identify areas of risk compared to physicians across the nation. Access to local and national resources will also be targeted to surgeons based on their results. Access the ACS Surgeon Well-Being page to learn more about the tool.
Furthermore, the College has continued to make its communications vehicles more interactive and user-friendly. The ACS Communities are thriving, allowing members to share their common concerns and interests in a protected environment. We also are working to have all of our major publications, including the Bulletin and the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, moved to fully digital platforms.
I am proud of the strides the College is making and look forward to an exciting and productive year. As always, please let us know how we can better serve you and your patients.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
With a new administration and Congress in place, as well as many exciting internal changes, the American College of Surgeons (ACS) is looking forward to an exciting year ahead.
Quality improvement
Making certain that surgeons have the tools they need to measure and evaluate their performance is a key mission of the College. To this end, we have initiated the database integration system, which will bring together under a single platform the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®), National Cancer Database, National Trauma Data Bank, and Surgeon Specific Registry (SSRTM). This project, which is being implemented incrementally, will make it easier for surgeons to meet American Board of Surgery (ABS) Maintenance of Certification requirements and Medicare payment mandates.
Furthermore, the College intends to publish an ACS quality manual this year. This comprehensive guidebook will outline strategies and resources needed to ensure the delivery of optimal surgical care.
Advocacy
The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), enacted in 2015, repealed the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) methodology that was used for many years to calculate Medicare physician reimbursement. Replacing the SGR is the Quality Payment Program (QPP), which advances a longstanding policy goal of basing payment on value rather than on volume.
Surgeons can participate in the QPP through one of two pathways—the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) or the Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs). MIPS is the default QPP pathway most physicians will use initially. The College has taken a number of steps to ensure that surgeons are able to comply with MIPS’ reporting requirements and performance measures. For example, we have created an online Resource Center (https://www.facs.org/advocacy/qpp) for surgeons seeking information about the QPP. In addition, we are working with health policy experts at Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, to propose surgical APMs.
We anticipate that the new presidential administration and Republican-controlled Congress will leave QPP untouched—at least for a while. However, we also speculate that they will attempt to repeal at least some provisions in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The ACS intends to play an active role in what is certain to be a highly charged debate—just as we did when the ACA was under consideration. As we enter this discussion, we will advocate for the policies that we believe will have the greatest benefit toward ensuring that all surgical patients have access to necessary services. We will not be swayed by politics but rather, will promote our enduring principles for health care reform: quality improvement and patient safety, patient access to surgical care, reduction of health care costs, and medical liability reform.
Education
Surgical education and training have been at the heart of the College’s mission since the organization’s inception. We believe the ACS’ education and training programs are the cornerstones of excellence, transform possibilities into realities, and instill the joy of lifelong learning.
Of particular concern in recent years have been reports that a significant percentage of general surgeon residency graduates leave training feeling insecure about their ability to perform advanced procedures and to manage a practice. In response, the College launched the Transition to Practice in General Surgery program, which provides opportunities for recently graduated residents to engage in a period of mentored practice.
In addition, the College has been working with other stakeholders, including the ABS, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, the Association of Program Directors in Surgery, and the Residency Review Committee for Surgery, to develop a road map to secure the future of general surgery. Concepts discussed in these meetings include the following:
- Medical student boot camps
- Further training after five years of general surgery residency
- Modification to duty-hour requirements
- Competency-based education and skills assessment
- Guidelines for self-assessment during residency
- A faculty development requirement
- Career-long record keeping, starting in medical school
Today’s residents are tomorrow’s surgeons. Given the aging population that will be seeking their services, it is imperative that the House of Surgery take responsibility for ensuring that graduates of general surgery training programs have the full range of skills and the confidence necessary to care for these vulnerable patients.
Member services and communication
Our Member Services area continues to develop programs that are designed to encourage surgeon engagement and well-being.
The 2017 Leadership & Advocacy Summit, May 6-9 in Washington, DC, will address such topics as team building, managing critical situations, burnout, common mistakes in leadership, and domestic volunteerism. During the advocacy portion of the meeting, members will have opportunities to flex their leadership muscle and advocate on their patients’ behalf.
The College recognizes that surgeons need to be mentally, emotionally, and physically healthy to provide optimal care to their patients. With this thought in mind, the ACS invites all active, dues-paying members to use the Physician Well-Being Index. This validated screening tool provides an opportunity for surgeons to better understand their overall well-being and identify areas of risk compared to physicians across the nation. Access to local and national resources will also be targeted to surgeons based on their results. Access the ACS Surgeon Well-Being page to learn more about the tool.
Furthermore, the College has continued to make its communications vehicles more interactive and user-friendly. The ACS Communities are thriving, allowing members to share their common concerns and interests in a protected environment. We also are working to have all of our major publications, including the Bulletin and the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, moved to fully digital platforms.
I am proud of the strides the College is making and look forward to an exciting and productive year. As always, please let us know how we can better serve you and your patients.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
With a new administration and Congress in place, as well as many exciting internal changes, the American College of Surgeons (ACS) is looking forward to an exciting year ahead.
Quality improvement
Making certain that surgeons have the tools they need to measure and evaluate their performance is a key mission of the College. To this end, we have initiated the database integration system, which will bring together under a single platform the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®), National Cancer Database, National Trauma Data Bank, and Surgeon Specific Registry (SSRTM). This project, which is being implemented incrementally, will make it easier for surgeons to meet American Board of Surgery (ABS) Maintenance of Certification requirements and Medicare payment mandates.
Furthermore, the College intends to publish an ACS quality manual this year. This comprehensive guidebook will outline strategies and resources needed to ensure the delivery of optimal surgical care.
Advocacy
The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), enacted in 2015, repealed the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) methodology that was used for many years to calculate Medicare physician reimbursement. Replacing the SGR is the Quality Payment Program (QPP), which advances a longstanding policy goal of basing payment on value rather than on volume.
Surgeons can participate in the QPP through one of two pathways—the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) or the Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs). MIPS is the default QPP pathway most physicians will use initially. The College has taken a number of steps to ensure that surgeons are able to comply with MIPS’ reporting requirements and performance measures. For example, we have created an online Resource Center (https://www.facs.org/advocacy/qpp) for surgeons seeking information about the QPP. In addition, we are working with health policy experts at Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, to propose surgical APMs.
We anticipate that the new presidential administration and Republican-controlled Congress will leave QPP untouched—at least for a while. However, we also speculate that they will attempt to repeal at least some provisions in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The ACS intends to play an active role in what is certain to be a highly charged debate—just as we did when the ACA was under consideration. As we enter this discussion, we will advocate for the policies that we believe will have the greatest benefit toward ensuring that all surgical patients have access to necessary services. We will not be swayed by politics but rather, will promote our enduring principles for health care reform: quality improvement and patient safety, patient access to surgical care, reduction of health care costs, and medical liability reform.
Education
Surgical education and training have been at the heart of the College’s mission since the organization’s inception. We believe the ACS’ education and training programs are the cornerstones of excellence, transform possibilities into realities, and instill the joy of lifelong learning.
Of particular concern in recent years have been reports that a significant percentage of general surgeon residency graduates leave training feeling insecure about their ability to perform advanced procedures and to manage a practice. In response, the College launched the Transition to Practice in General Surgery program, which provides opportunities for recently graduated residents to engage in a period of mentored practice.
In addition, the College has been working with other stakeholders, including the ABS, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, the Association of Program Directors in Surgery, and the Residency Review Committee for Surgery, to develop a road map to secure the future of general surgery. Concepts discussed in these meetings include the following:
- Medical student boot camps
- Further training after five years of general surgery residency
- Modification to duty-hour requirements
- Competency-based education and skills assessment
- Guidelines for self-assessment during residency
- A faculty development requirement
- Career-long record keeping, starting in medical school
Today’s residents are tomorrow’s surgeons. Given the aging population that will be seeking their services, it is imperative that the House of Surgery take responsibility for ensuring that graduates of general surgery training programs have the full range of skills and the confidence necessary to care for these vulnerable patients.
Member services and communication
Our Member Services area continues to develop programs that are designed to encourage surgeon engagement and well-being.
The 2017 Leadership & Advocacy Summit, May 6-9 in Washington, DC, will address such topics as team building, managing critical situations, burnout, common mistakes in leadership, and domestic volunteerism. During the advocacy portion of the meeting, members will have opportunities to flex their leadership muscle and advocate on their patients’ behalf.
The College recognizes that surgeons need to be mentally, emotionally, and physically healthy to provide optimal care to their patients. With this thought in mind, the ACS invites all active, dues-paying members to use the Physician Well-Being Index. This validated screening tool provides an opportunity for surgeons to better understand their overall well-being and identify areas of risk compared to physicians across the nation. Access to local and national resources will also be targeted to surgeons based on their results. Access the ACS Surgeon Well-Being page to learn more about the tool.
Furthermore, the College has continued to make its communications vehicles more interactive and user-friendly. The ACS Communities are thriving, allowing members to share their common concerns and interests in a protected environment. We also are working to have all of our major publications, including the Bulletin and the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, moved to fully digital platforms.
I am proud of the strides the College is making and look forward to an exciting and productive year. As always, please let us know how we can better serve you and your patients.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
Commentary: ACS continues to support surgeons in training and in practice
It is once again my privilege to provide ACS Surgery News readers with an update on the activities of the American College of Surgeons (ACS). Each year the scope of the College’s projects as described in this missive continues to expand as the ACS leadership and staff strive to meet our members’ evolving demands.
FIRST things first
A highlight from this last year has been the College’s participation in the Flexibility in Duty Hour Requirements for Surgical Trainees (FIRST) Trial. As members of an organization founded largely for purposes of ensuring that surgeons are adequately trained to provide quality care, many ACS Fellows have expressed concern about the structure of today’s surgical residency programs. They are particularly concerned about the effects of the residency work hour restrictions that the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) issued in 2003 and 2011.
The ACS, the American Board of Surgery, and ACGME sponsored the FIRST Trial to determine whether modified restrictions on resident work hours would affect patient care, surgical outcomes, and resident perceptions. Karl Y. Bilimoria, MD, MS, FACS, ACS Faculty Scholar and director, Surgical Outcomes and Quality Improvement Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, led the study, which involved 117 ACGME-approved U.S. general surgery residency programs and their 151 affiliated hospitals. These institutions were randomly assigned to either an intervention group with flexible duty hours or a control group.
For both groups the workweek was limited to an average of 80 hours, residents averaged one day off per week, and residents could take call no more than every third night. The standard policy group, composed of 59 training programs and 71 affiliated hospitals, also complied with the ACGME’s other mandates, whereas the 58 training programs and 80 affiliate hospitals in the flexible policy group received permission from the ACGME to waive some of the restrictions on maximum shift lengths and time off between shifts.
Using the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) platform to measure death or serious morbidity within 30 days of an operation, the FIRST Trial showed that of the nearly 139,000 patients treated, the rate of this composite outcome was similar in both study groups (9 percent). We also found no group differences for 10 other patient outcomes, including the need for a second operation. Moreover, residents in the flexible policy group were more likely than were participants in the standard policy group to report improved continuity of patient care, acquisition of operative skills, and levels of professionalism.
Results of the FIRST Trial were published in the New England Journal of Medicine and announced at the Academic Surgical Congress last month. In light of the study’s findings, the ACGME has agreed to review its work hour policies. I am confident that the ACS, ABS, and ACGME will be able to use this initiative to develop new consensus-based protocols for resident work hours.
Other ACS initiatives
The FIRST Trial is just one important initiative that the College has undertaken recently. We remained active on the advocacy front, working closely with Congress and other physician groups to achieve passage of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA). This important legislation repeals the sustainable growth rate Medicare physician payment formula, establishes an annual payment update of 0.5 percent for five years, and seeks to establish a Merit-Based Incentive Payment System. The College also issued public comments on physician rating systems, questioning the usefulness of information that is based on administrative rather than clinical data.
In terms of practice management, the College has provided resources and information to help surgeons make the transition to the 10th revision of the International Classification of Diseases coding system (ICD-10). We also have continued to sponsor Current Procedural Terminology coding workshops and to offer access to the ACS Coding Hotline.
To ensure that all patients have access to quality care, the ACS Committee on Health Care Disparities established a relationship with National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and conducted a symposium in May 2015 to address variations in care across all patient populations.
Through involvement with the Hartford Consensus, chaired by ACS Regent Lenworth Jacobs, MD, FACS, the College has sought to ensure that victims of mass casualty events receive timely lifesaving care. This past year, the Hartford Consensus joined forces with the White House to publish a compendium of strategies to enhance survival in mass casualty events and ensure the public understands how to assist victims of these tragic incidents.
The College has continued to strengthen its Quality Programs and is attaining a high-profile reputation in this arena. For example, ACS NSQIP received the John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award for Innovation in Patient Safety and Quality at the National Level from The Joint Commission and National Quality Forum for bringing the outcomes measurement program to nearly 700 hospitals.
In addition, we launched the Coalition for Quality in Geriatric Surgery Project to improve care of older patients though a standards and verification program launched July 1 with funding from the John A. Hartford Foundation. To satisfy the needs of patients at the other end of the age spectrum, the College also continued development of the Children’s Surgery Verification Quality Improvement Program. Furthermore, through the ACS Clinical Research Program, we published the first edition of Operative Standards for Cancer Surgery.
Finally, the College is working to integrate all of our clinical registries into a common, consolidated warehouse and reporting platform. We are excited about the potential of this project and how it will help ACS members more easily report their outcomes to regulatory bodies, measure their performance, and, most importantly, improve the quality of patient care.
Clearly, the College provides positive support to surgeons in training and in practice. As always, I welcome your suggestions regarding how we can better meet your needs and help you provide surgical care of the highest standards to your patients.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
It is once again my privilege to provide ACS Surgery News readers with an update on the activities of the American College of Surgeons (ACS). Each year the scope of the College’s projects as described in this missive continues to expand as the ACS leadership and staff strive to meet our members’ evolving demands.
FIRST things first
A highlight from this last year has been the College’s participation in the Flexibility in Duty Hour Requirements for Surgical Trainees (FIRST) Trial. As members of an organization founded largely for purposes of ensuring that surgeons are adequately trained to provide quality care, many ACS Fellows have expressed concern about the structure of today’s surgical residency programs. They are particularly concerned about the effects of the residency work hour restrictions that the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) issued in 2003 and 2011.
The ACS, the American Board of Surgery, and ACGME sponsored the FIRST Trial to determine whether modified restrictions on resident work hours would affect patient care, surgical outcomes, and resident perceptions. Karl Y. Bilimoria, MD, MS, FACS, ACS Faculty Scholar and director, Surgical Outcomes and Quality Improvement Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, led the study, which involved 117 ACGME-approved U.S. general surgery residency programs and their 151 affiliated hospitals. These institutions were randomly assigned to either an intervention group with flexible duty hours or a control group.
For both groups the workweek was limited to an average of 80 hours, residents averaged one day off per week, and residents could take call no more than every third night. The standard policy group, composed of 59 training programs and 71 affiliated hospitals, also complied with the ACGME’s other mandates, whereas the 58 training programs and 80 affiliate hospitals in the flexible policy group received permission from the ACGME to waive some of the restrictions on maximum shift lengths and time off between shifts.
Using the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) platform to measure death or serious morbidity within 30 days of an operation, the FIRST Trial showed that of the nearly 139,000 patients treated, the rate of this composite outcome was similar in both study groups (9 percent). We also found no group differences for 10 other patient outcomes, including the need for a second operation. Moreover, residents in the flexible policy group were more likely than were participants in the standard policy group to report improved continuity of patient care, acquisition of operative skills, and levels of professionalism.
Results of the FIRST Trial were published in the New England Journal of Medicine and announced at the Academic Surgical Congress last month. In light of the study’s findings, the ACGME has agreed to review its work hour policies. I am confident that the ACS, ABS, and ACGME will be able to use this initiative to develop new consensus-based protocols for resident work hours.
Other ACS initiatives
The FIRST Trial is just one important initiative that the College has undertaken recently. We remained active on the advocacy front, working closely with Congress and other physician groups to achieve passage of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA). This important legislation repeals the sustainable growth rate Medicare physician payment formula, establishes an annual payment update of 0.5 percent for five years, and seeks to establish a Merit-Based Incentive Payment System. The College also issued public comments on physician rating systems, questioning the usefulness of information that is based on administrative rather than clinical data.
In terms of practice management, the College has provided resources and information to help surgeons make the transition to the 10th revision of the International Classification of Diseases coding system (ICD-10). We also have continued to sponsor Current Procedural Terminology coding workshops and to offer access to the ACS Coding Hotline.
To ensure that all patients have access to quality care, the ACS Committee on Health Care Disparities established a relationship with National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and conducted a symposium in May 2015 to address variations in care across all patient populations.
Through involvement with the Hartford Consensus, chaired by ACS Regent Lenworth Jacobs, MD, FACS, the College has sought to ensure that victims of mass casualty events receive timely lifesaving care. This past year, the Hartford Consensus joined forces with the White House to publish a compendium of strategies to enhance survival in mass casualty events and ensure the public understands how to assist victims of these tragic incidents.
The College has continued to strengthen its Quality Programs and is attaining a high-profile reputation in this arena. For example, ACS NSQIP received the John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award for Innovation in Patient Safety and Quality at the National Level from The Joint Commission and National Quality Forum for bringing the outcomes measurement program to nearly 700 hospitals.
In addition, we launched the Coalition for Quality in Geriatric Surgery Project to improve care of older patients though a standards and verification program launched July 1 with funding from the John A. Hartford Foundation. To satisfy the needs of patients at the other end of the age spectrum, the College also continued development of the Children’s Surgery Verification Quality Improvement Program. Furthermore, through the ACS Clinical Research Program, we published the first edition of Operative Standards for Cancer Surgery.
Finally, the College is working to integrate all of our clinical registries into a common, consolidated warehouse and reporting platform. We are excited about the potential of this project and how it will help ACS members more easily report their outcomes to regulatory bodies, measure their performance, and, most importantly, improve the quality of patient care.
Clearly, the College provides positive support to surgeons in training and in practice. As always, I welcome your suggestions regarding how we can better meet your needs and help you provide surgical care of the highest standards to your patients.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
It is once again my privilege to provide ACS Surgery News readers with an update on the activities of the American College of Surgeons (ACS). Each year the scope of the College’s projects as described in this missive continues to expand as the ACS leadership and staff strive to meet our members’ evolving demands.
FIRST things first
A highlight from this last year has been the College’s participation in the Flexibility in Duty Hour Requirements for Surgical Trainees (FIRST) Trial. As members of an organization founded largely for purposes of ensuring that surgeons are adequately trained to provide quality care, many ACS Fellows have expressed concern about the structure of today’s surgical residency programs. They are particularly concerned about the effects of the residency work hour restrictions that the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) issued in 2003 and 2011.
The ACS, the American Board of Surgery, and ACGME sponsored the FIRST Trial to determine whether modified restrictions on resident work hours would affect patient care, surgical outcomes, and resident perceptions. Karl Y. Bilimoria, MD, MS, FACS, ACS Faculty Scholar and director, Surgical Outcomes and Quality Improvement Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, led the study, which involved 117 ACGME-approved U.S. general surgery residency programs and their 151 affiliated hospitals. These institutions were randomly assigned to either an intervention group with flexible duty hours or a control group.
For both groups the workweek was limited to an average of 80 hours, residents averaged one day off per week, and residents could take call no more than every third night. The standard policy group, composed of 59 training programs and 71 affiliated hospitals, also complied with the ACGME’s other mandates, whereas the 58 training programs and 80 affiliate hospitals in the flexible policy group received permission from the ACGME to waive some of the restrictions on maximum shift lengths and time off between shifts.
Using the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) platform to measure death or serious morbidity within 30 days of an operation, the FIRST Trial showed that of the nearly 139,000 patients treated, the rate of this composite outcome was similar in both study groups (9 percent). We also found no group differences for 10 other patient outcomes, including the need for a second operation. Moreover, residents in the flexible policy group were more likely than were participants in the standard policy group to report improved continuity of patient care, acquisition of operative skills, and levels of professionalism.
Results of the FIRST Trial were published in the New England Journal of Medicine and announced at the Academic Surgical Congress last month. In light of the study’s findings, the ACGME has agreed to review its work hour policies. I am confident that the ACS, ABS, and ACGME will be able to use this initiative to develop new consensus-based protocols for resident work hours.
Other ACS initiatives
The FIRST Trial is just one important initiative that the College has undertaken recently. We remained active on the advocacy front, working closely with Congress and other physician groups to achieve passage of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA). This important legislation repeals the sustainable growth rate Medicare physician payment formula, establishes an annual payment update of 0.5 percent for five years, and seeks to establish a Merit-Based Incentive Payment System. The College also issued public comments on physician rating systems, questioning the usefulness of information that is based on administrative rather than clinical data.
In terms of practice management, the College has provided resources and information to help surgeons make the transition to the 10th revision of the International Classification of Diseases coding system (ICD-10). We also have continued to sponsor Current Procedural Terminology coding workshops and to offer access to the ACS Coding Hotline.
To ensure that all patients have access to quality care, the ACS Committee on Health Care Disparities established a relationship with National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and conducted a symposium in May 2015 to address variations in care across all patient populations.
Through involvement with the Hartford Consensus, chaired by ACS Regent Lenworth Jacobs, MD, FACS, the College has sought to ensure that victims of mass casualty events receive timely lifesaving care. This past year, the Hartford Consensus joined forces with the White House to publish a compendium of strategies to enhance survival in mass casualty events and ensure the public understands how to assist victims of these tragic incidents.
The College has continued to strengthen its Quality Programs and is attaining a high-profile reputation in this arena. For example, ACS NSQIP received the John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award for Innovation in Patient Safety and Quality at the National Level from The Joint Commission and National Quality Forum for bringing the outcomes measurement program to nearly 700 hospitals.
In addition, we launched the Coalition for Quality in Geriatric Surgery Project to improve care of older patients though a standards and verification program launched July 1 with funding from the John A. Hartford Foundation. To satisfy the needs of patients at the other end of the age spectrum, the College also continued development of the Children’s Surgery Verification Quality Improvement Program. Furthermore, through the ACS Clinical Research Program, we published the first edition of Operative Standards for Cancer Surgery.
Finally, the College is working to integrate all of our clinical registries into a common, consolidated warehouse and reporting platform. We are excited about the potential of this project and how it will help ACS members more easily report their outcomes to regulatory bodies, measure their performance, and, most importantly, improve the quality of patient care.
Clearly, the College provides positive support to surgeons in training and in practice. As always, I welcome your suggestions regarding how we can better meet your needs and help you provide surgical care of the highest standards to your patients.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
ACS poised to lead change in health care delivery
The American College of Surgeons (ACS) had another successful year in 2014, and the College leadership and staff are working to ensure that we make even greater strides in 2015.
The ACS Division of Advocacy and Health Policy got a boost in June 2014 when Frank Opelka, MD, FACS, and Patrick Bailey, MD, FACS, joined the Washington Office team as Medical Directors of Quality and Advocacy, respectively. These surgeons are playing a leading role in positioning the ACS as a leader in the health policy, legislative, and regulatory arenas.
To address surgeons’ ongoing concerns regarding Medicare physician payment, the ACS has worked closely with Congress to develop legislation that would repeal the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula. More than 200 ACS members from 44 states participated in 229 meetings on Capitol Hill April 1, 2014, as part of Leadership & Advocacy Summit, and the SGR was a key topic of discussion. Unfortunately, passage of the SGR Repeal Act was derailed because of funding challenges, and another temporary patch, which expires April 1, 2015, was put in place. The ACS continues to urge Congress to pass the SGR Repeal Act in this legislative session.
Other issues on the ACS health policy agenda include averting a provision in the final rule on the Medicare physician fee schedule that would convert 10- and 90-day global codes to 0-day codes, medical liability reform, and graduate medical education.
We are looking forward to taking Operation Giving Back in a new direction under the leadership of Medical Director Girma Tefera, MD, FACS. Dr. Tefera will be responsible for coordinating the College’s response to disasters worldwide, developing programs and opportunities for surgeon volunteers, communicating the work of the OGB, and increasing the College’s recognition among other global organizations.
In addition, the ACS and the U.S. Military Health System have entered into a 3-year strategic partnership that will encourage collaboration with respect to training and education, research, quality improvement, and combat readiness and disaster preparedness. M. Margaret (Peggy) Knudson, MD, FACS, is the Medical Director of this initiative.
Enthusiasm for leadership training among young surgeons and chapter officers remains high, More than 425 of these individuals participated in the leadership portion of the 2014 Leadership & Advocacy Summit, which featured sessions on best practices for chapters, mentoring, and emotional intelligence The next Summit will take place April 18-21.
The 2014 Initiates class was one of the College’s largest, totaling 1,640. To further boost membership, we have launched a Young Surgeons Marketing Campaign – Realize the Potential of Your Profession – and a Show Your Pride campaign.
The College also has launched a nationwide ACS Education and Training Campaign to communicate that ACS Education and Training are the cornerstones of excellence, transform possibilities into realities, and instill the joy of lifelong learning.
Many of the College’s recent education efforts have centered on assisting surgeons – particularly young surgeons – in career transitions. To address ongoing concerns regarding surgical training, the ACS has appointed a Committee on Residency Training (“Fix the Five”).
To help young surgeons shift from residency to practice, the ACS has developed the Transition to Practice (TTP) Program, which provides individuals who have completed five years of general surgery training with the opportunity to serve as a junior partner in a surgical practice. Presently, the TTP Program is being pilot-tested at 10 sites. In addition, the ACS has partnered with the Association of Program Directors in Surgery and the Association for Surgical Education to create a Surgery Resident Prep Curriculum for medical students transitioning to residency.
The ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) celebrated its 10th anniversary in July 2014 at its annual conference in New York. A record-breaking 1,200 representatives from nearly 600 hospitals attended. Furthermore, the Joint Commission and the National Quality Forum (NQF) will honor ACS NSQIP® with the 2014 John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award later this month. The Eisenberg Award recognizes the major achievements of individuals and organizations in advancing patient safety and quality of care.
Another quality improvement activity has now been completed after three years of work – the development of comprehensive guidelines that define the resources needed to perform safe, effective pediatric operations. These standards were published in the March 2014 issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. The College also is developing a Quality Manual that will be useful in guiding chief surgical quality officers as they attempt to implement quality improvement and patient safety programs in their institutions. Additionally, the ACS Clinical Research Program (ACS CRP) has completed the manuscript for Operative Standards for Cancer Surgery.
The Committee on Trauma has been actively involved in government efforts to establish guidelines for emergency medical services in mass-casualty events, including hemorrhage control. In a related effort, the Hartford Consensus, led by ACS Regent Lenworth Jacobs, Jr., MD, FACS, has articulated a framework for increasing survivability in mass shootings, known as THREAT: 1) threat suppression, 2) hemorrhage control, 3) rapid extrication to safety, 4) assessment by medical providers, and 5) transport to definitive care.
Among the Commission on Cancer’s (COC’s) most significant accomplishments in 2014 was the development of a framework for oncology medical home standards. In addition, the COC held its first legislative briefing in 2014 and issued a written response to the Institutes of Medicine report, Delivering High-Quality Cancer Care: Charting a New Course for a System in Crisis.
The College is providing more opportunities for surgeons to communicate with each other and for the ACS to communicate with the membership. The ACS Communities, now totaling 92, launched in July 2014, providing an interactive platform for surgeons to share their views, interests, and concerns. Shortly thereafter, the College launched a new, easy-to-navigate website, www.facs.org, which has been well-received.
In 2014-2015, the ACS Inspiring Quality tour has made stops in Northern California, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Iowa, Utah, and Sacramento, CA. At these meetings, we have continued to communicate to policymakers how ACS Quality Programs reduce spending and improve outcomes.
With these programs and solid leadership, the College is well-positioned to lead efforts to ensure that surgical patients receive optimal care. Your continued support is appreciated and your active involvement is strongly encouraged.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons, Chicago.
The American College of Surgeons (ACS) had another successful year in 2014, and the College leadership and staff are working to ensure that we make even greater strides in 2015.
The ACS Division of Advocacy and Health Policy got a boost in June 2014 when Frank Opelka, MD, FACS, and Patrick Bailey, MD, FACS, joined the Washington Office team as Medical Directors of Quality and Advocacy, respectively. These surgeons are playing a leading role in positioning the ACS as a leader in the health policy, legislative, and regulatory arenas.
To address surgeons’ ongoing concerns regarding Medicare physician payment, the ACS has worked closely with Congress to develop legislation that would repeal the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula. More than 200 ACS members from 44 states participated in 229 meetings on Capitol Hill April 1, 2014, as part of Leadership & Advocacy Summit, and the SGR was a key topic of discussion. Unfortunately, passage of the SGR Repeal Act was derailed because of funding challenges, and another temporary patch, which expires April 1, 2015, was put in place. The ACS continues to urge Congress to pass the SGR Repeal Act in this legislative session.
Other issues on the ACS health policy agenda include averting a provision in the final rule on the Medicare physician fee schedule that would convert 10- and 90-day global codes to 0-day codes, medical liability reform, and graduate medical education.
We are looking forward to taking Operation Giving Back in a new direction under the leadership of Medical Director Girma Tefera, MD, FACS. Dr. Tefera will be responsible for coordinating the College’s response to disasters worldwide, developing programs and opportunities for surgeon volunteers, communicating the work of the OGB, and increasing the College’s recognition among other global organizations.
In addition, the ACS and the U.S. Military Health System have entered into a 3-year strategic partnership that will encourage collaboration with respect to training and education, research, quality improvement, and combat readiness and disaster preparedness. M. Margaret (Peggy) Knudson, MD, FACS, is the Medical Director of this initiative.
Enthusiasm for leadership training among young surgeons and chapter officers remains high, More than 425 of these individuals participated in the leadership portion of the 2014 Leadership & Advocacy Summit, which featured sessions on best practices for chapters, mentoring, and emotional intelligence The next Summit will take place April 18-21.
The 2014 Initiates class was one of the College’s largest, totaling 1,640. To further boost membership, we have launched a Young Surgeons Marketing Campaign – Realize the Potential of Your Profession – and a Show Your Pride campaign.
The College also has launched a nationwide ACS Education and Training Campaign to communicate that ACS Education and Training are the cornerstones of excellence, transform possibilities into realities, and instill the joy of lifelong learning.
Many of the College’s recent education efforts have centered on assisting surgeons – particularly young surgeons – in career transitions. To address ongoing concerns regarding surgical training, the ACS has appointed a Committee on Residency Training (“Fix the Five”).
To help young surgeons shift from residency to practice, the ACS has developed the Transition to Practice (TTP) Program, which provides individuals who have completed five years of general surgery training with the opportunity to serve as a junior partner in a surgical practice. Presently, the TTP Program is being pilot-tested at 10 sites. In addition, the ACS has partnered with the Association of Program Directors in Surgery and the Association for Surgical Education to create a Surgery Resident Prep Curriculum for medical students transitioning to residency.
The ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) celebrated its 10th anniversary in July 2014 at its annual conference in New York. A record-breaking 1,200 representatives from nearly 600 hospitals attended. Furthermore, the Joint Commission and the National Quality Forum (NQF) will honor ACS NSQIP® with the 2014 John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award later this month. The Eisenberg Award recognizes the major achievements of individuals and organizations in advancing patient safety and quality of care.
Another quality improvement activity has now been completed after three years of work – the development of comprehensive guidelines that define the resources needed to perform safe, effective pediatric operations. These standards were published in the March 2014 issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. The College also is developing a Quality Manual that will be useful in guiding chief surgical quality officers as they attempt to implement quality improvement and patient safety programs in their institutions. Additionally, the ACS Clinical Research Program (ACS CRP) has completed the manuscript for Operative Standards for Cancer Surgery.
The Committee on Trauma has been actively involved in government efforts to establish guidelines for emergency medical services in mass-casualty events, including hemorrhage control. In a related effort, the Hartford Consensus, led by ACS Regent Lenworth Jacobs, Jr., MD, FACS, has articulated a framework for increasing survivability in mass shootings, known as THREAT: 1) threat suppression, 2) hemorrhage control, 3) rapid extrication to safety, 4) assessment by medical providers, and 5) transport to definitive care.
Among the Commission on Cancer’s (COC’s) most significant accomplishments in 2014 was the development of a framework for oncology medical home standards. In addition, the COC held its first legislative briefing in 2014 and issued a written response to the Institutes of Medicine report, Delivering High-Quality Cancer Care: Charting a New Course for a System in Crisis.
The College is providing more opportunities for surgeons to communicate with each other and for the ACS to communicate with the membership. The ACS Communities, now totaling 92, launched in July 2014, providing an interactive platform for surgeons to share their views, interests, and concerns. Shortly thereafter, the College launched a new, easy-to-navigate website, www.facs.org, which has been well-received.
In 2014-2015, the ACS Inspiring Quality tour has made stops in Northern California, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Iowa, Utah, and Sacramento, CA. At these meetings, we have continued to communicate to policymakers how ACS Quality Programs reduce spending and improve outcomes.
With these programs and solid leadership, the College is well-positioned to lead efforts to ensure that surgical patients receive optimal care. Your continued support is appreciated and your active involvement is strongly encouraged.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons, Chicago.
The American College of Surgeons (ACS) had another successful year in 2014, and the College leadership and staff are working to ensure that we make even greater strides in 2015.
The ACS Division of Advocacy and Health Policy got a boost in June 2014 when Frank Opelka, MD, FACS, and Patrick Bailey, MD, FACS, joined the Washington Office team as Medical Directors of Quality and Advocacy, respectively. These surgeons are playing a leading role in positioning the ACS as a leader in the health policy, legislative, and regulatory arenas.
To address surgeons’ ongoing concerns regarding Medicare physician payment, the ACS has worked closely with Congress to develop legislation that would repeal the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula. More than 200 ACS members from 44 states participated in 229 meetings on Capitol Hill April 1, 2014, as part of Leadership & Advocacy Summit, and the SGR was a key topic of discussion. Unfortunately, passage of the SGR Repeal Act was derailed because of funding challenges, and another temporary patch, which expires April 1, 2015, was put in place. The ACS continues to urge Congress to pass the SGR Repeal Act in this legislative session.
Other issues on the ACS health policy agenda include averting a provision in the final rule on the Medicare physician fee schedule that would convert 10- and 90-day global codes to 0-day codes, medical liability reform, and graduate medical education.
We are looking forward to taking Operation Giving Back in a new direction under the leadership of Medical Director Girma Tefera, MD, FACS. Dr. Tefera will be responsible for coordinating the College’s response to disasters worldwide, developing programs and opportunities for surgeon volunteers, communicating the work of the OGB, and increasing the College’s recognition among other global organizations.
In addition, the ACS and the U.S. Military Health System have entered into a 3-year strategic partnership that will encourage collaboration with respect to training and education, research, quality improvement, and combat readiness and disaster preparedness. M. Margaret (Peggy) Knudson, MD, FACS, is the Medical Director of this initiative.
Enthusiasm for leadership training among young surgeons and chapter officers remains high, More than 425 of these individuals participated in the leadership portion of the 2014 Leadership & Advocacy Summit, which featured sessions on best practices for chapters, mentoring, and emotional intelligence The next Summit will take place April 18-21.
The 2014 Initiates class was one of the College’s largest, totaling 1,640. To further boost membership, we have launched a Young Surgeons Marketing Campaign – Realize the Potential of Your Profession – and a Show Your Pride campaign.
The College also has launched a nationwide ACS Education and Training Campaign to communicate that ACS Education and Training are the cornerstones of excellence, transform possibilities into realities, and instill the joy of lifelong learning.
Many of the College’s recent education efforts have centered on assisting surgeons – particularly young surgeons – in career transitions. To address ongoing concerns regarding surgical training, the ACS has appointed a Committee on Residency Training (“Fix the Five”).
To help young surgeons shift from residency to practice, the ACS has developed the Transition to Practice (TTP) Program, which provides individuals who have completed five years of general surgery training with the opportunity to serve as a junior partner in a surgical practice. Presently, the TTP Program is being pilot-tested at 10 sites. In addition, the ACS has partnered with the Association of Program Directors in Surgery and the Association for Surgical Education to create a Surgery Resident Prep Curriculum for medical students transitioning to residency.
The ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) celebrated its 10th anniversary in July 2014 at its annual conference in New York. A record-breaking 1,200 representatives from nearly 600 hospitals attended. Furthermore, the Joint Commission and the National Quality Forum (NQF) will honor ACS NSQIP® with the 2014 John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award later this month. The Eisenberg Award recognizes the major achievements of individuals and organizations in advancing patient safety and quality of care.
Another quality improvement activity has now been completed after three years of work – the development of comprehensive guidelines that define the resources needed to perform safe, effective pediatric operations. These standards were published in the March 2014 issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. The College also is developing a Quality Manual that will be useful in guiding chief surgical quality officers as they attempt to implement quality improvement and patient safety programs in their institutions. Additionally, the ACS Clinical Research Program (ACS CRP) has completed the manuscript for Operative Standards for Cancer Surgery.
The Committee on Trauma has been actively involved in government efforts to establish guidelines for emergency medical services in mass-casualty events, including hemorrhage control. In a related effort, the Hartford Consensus, led by ACS Regent Lenworth Jacobs, Jr., MD, FACS, has articulated a framework for increasing survivability in mass shootings, known as THREAT: 1) threat suppression, 2) hemorrhage control, 3) rapid extrication to safety, 4) assessment by medical providers, and 5) transport to definitive care.
Among the Commission on Cancer’s (COC’s) most significant accomplishments in 2014 was the development of a framework for oncology medical home standards. In addition, the COC held its first legislative briefing in 2014 and issued a written response to the Institutes of Medicine report, Delivering High-Quality Cancer Care: Charting a New Course for a System in Crisis.
The College is providing more opportunities for surgeons to communicate with each other and for the ACS to communicate with the membership. The ACS Communities, now totaling 92, launched in July 2014, providing an interactive platform for surgeons to share their views, interests, and concerns. Shortly thereafter, the College launched a new, easy-to-navigate website, www.facs.org, which has been well-received.
In 2014-2015, the ACS Inspiring Quality tour has made stops in Northern California, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Iowa, Utah, and Sacramento, CA. At these meetings, we have continued to communicate to policymakers how ACS Quality Programs reduce spending and improve outcomes.
With these programs and solid leadership, the College is well-positioned to lead efforts to ensure that surgical patients receive optimal care. Your continued support is appreciated and your active involvement is strongly encouraged.
Dr. Hoyt is the Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons, Chicago.
ACS takes steps to lead the profession through the next 100 years
As we commemorate the American College of Surgeons’ Centennial, the leadership and staff continue to develop and engage in initiatives designed to ensure that members of the College are best positioned to continuing providing quality surgical care for the next 100 years.
With respect to advocacy and health policy, the College remains at the forefront of efforts to repeal and replace the flawed sustainable growth rate formula used to calculate Medicare physician payment. Importantly, the College has been working on a proposal to replace the SGR with a value-based update, which emphasizes that value = quality/cost.
The ACS is also looking at alternative methods of resolving medical liability claims. We hosted a Medical Liability Summit in October, and articles based on the presentations given at the meeting will be published in a special issue of the Bulletin this March.
Advocacy
In addition, the College has successfully nominated Fellows to serve on panels that are advising the government on quality of care issues. Last year, ACS nominee Stephen B. Edge, MD, FACS, was appointed co-chair of the National Quality Forum’s Cancer Maintenance Endorsement Project, and Frank Opelka, MD, FACS, Associate Medical Director of the Division of Advocacy and Health Policy, was appointed chair of the Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement.
Quality improvement
The College’s National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) continues to grow in size and stature. More than 500 hospitals now participate in ACS NSQIP, and data promulgated through this outcome measurement system were key in the completion of a project that the College conducted last year with the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare aimed at reducing colorectal surgical site infections. A total of 135 SSIs were averted at seven health care institutions that participated in the demonstration project, saving those facilities more $3.7 million. The Centers for Disease Control and ACS NSQIP also have entered into a formal agreement to study SSI. Additionally, approximately 30% of ACS NSQIP hospitals are participating in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services public reporting pilot program, Hospital Compare.
The Rapid Quality Reporting System has enabled Commission on Cancer–accredited programs to better adhere to five NQF-endorsed quality performance measures. Recognizing the potential value of this program, CMS recently contracted with the ACS to implement RQRS at 11 cancer centers that support public reporting through Hospital Compare.
At press time, ACS leaders had completed visits to 12 cities to discuss how quality-improvement efforts enhance surgical patient safety and reduce costs as part of the College’s Inspiring Quality initiative. With the assistance of Weber Shandwick, we also released the video Driven, which explores how surgical leaders and other innovators over the past 100 years have inspired quality by advancing surgical care.
Education
The College continues to establish benchmarks and standards in surgical education. This past year, new emphasis was placed on helping surgeons and residents to navigate transitions in their careers. Perhaps the most significant example of our efforts to assist residents as they transition into practice is the development of fellowships for young surgeons who are leaving training and entering into general surgery practice. The College will begin pilot testing the ACS Transition to Practice Fellowship in General Surgery on July 1 at five institutions in regions of the United States that currently are underserved by general surgeons. Furthermore, the ACS is collaborating with the Association of Program Directors in Surgery and the Association for Surgical Education to develop a new Entering Surgery Resident Prep Curriculum.
Workforce issues
Rural areas feel the effects of general surgeon shortage most acutely. To ensure that the College is better able to address the challenges that rural surgical practice poses, the College established a new Advisory Council for Rural Surgery.
And, to help surgeons make smart decisions as the trend toward hospital employment for physicians continues to grow, the ACS developed a new resource titled Surgeons as Institutional Employees: A Strategic Look at the Dimensions of Surgeons as Employees of Hospitals. This document mailed with the February 2013 Bulletin.
Communications
The College continues to modernize its communications vehicles. In September 2012, the College released the first issue of the newly redesigned Bulletin and is now in the process of working with consultants to reconstruct the public website (www.facs.org) and to integrate the members’ portal into the main site. To increase the visibility of the College’s advocacy efforts, the ACS last summer launched a monthly e-newsletter, The ACS Advocate.
Looking forward
The ACS is continuing to develop proactive solutions to the challenges facing surgeons. Your continued input on how we can address your concerns is always welcome.
Dr. Hoyt is Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
As we commemorate the American College of Surgeons’ Centennial, the leadership and staff continue to develop and engage in initiatives designed to ensure that members of the College are best positioned to continuing providing quality surgical care for the next 100 years.
With respect to advocacy and health policy, the College remains at the forefront of efforts to repeal and replace the flawed sustainable growth rate formula used to calculate Medicare physician payment. Importantly, the College has been working on a proposal to replace the SGR with a value-based update, which emphasizes that value = quality/cost.
The ACS is also looking at alternative methods of resolving medical liability claims. We hosted a Medical Liability Summit in October, and articles based on the presentations given at the meeting will be published in a special issue of the Bulletin this March.
Advocacy
In addition, the College has successfully nominated Fellows to serve on panels that are advising the government on quality of care issues. Last year, ACS nominee Stephen B. Edge, MD, FACS, was appointed co-chair of the National Quality Forum’s Cancer Maintenance Endorsement Project, and Frank Opelka, MD, FACS, Associate Medical Director of the Division of Advocacy and Health Policy, was appointed chair of the Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement.
Quality improvement
The College’s National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) continues to grow in size and stature. More than 500 hospitals now participate in ACS NSQIP, and data promulgated through this outcome measurement system were key in the completion of a project that the College conducted last year with the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare aimed at reducing colorectal surgical site infections. A total of 135 SSIs were averted at seven health care institutions that participated in the demonstration project, saving those facilities more $3.7 million. The Centers for Disease Control and ACS NSQIP also have entered into a formal agreement to study SSI. Additionally, approximately 30% of ACS NSQIP hospitals are participating in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services public reporting pilot program, Hospital Compare.
The Rapid Quality Reporting System has enabled Commission on Cancer–accredited programs to better adhere to five NQF-endorsed quality performance measures. Recognizing the potential value of this program, CMS recently contracted with the ACS to implement RQRS at 11 cancer centers that support public reporting through Hospital Compare.
At press time, ACS leaders had completed visits to 12 cities to discuss how quality-improvement efforts enhance surgical patient safety and reduce costs as part of the College’s Inspiring Quality initiative. With the assistance of Weber Shandwick, we also released the video Driven, which explores how surgical leaders and other innovators over the past 100 years have inspired quality by advancing surgical care.
Education
The College continues to establish benchmarks and standards in surgical education. This past year, new emphasis was placed on helping surgeons and residents to navigate transitions in their careers. Perhaps the most significant example of our efforts to assist residents as they transition into practice is the development of fellowships for young surgeons who are leaving training and entering into general surgery practice. The College will begin pilot testing the ACS Transition to Practice Fellowship in General Surgery on July 1 at five institutions in regions of the United States that currently are underserved by general surgeons. Furthermore, the ACS is collaborating with the Association of Program Directors in Surgery and the Association for Surgical Education to develop a new Entering Surgery Resident Prep Curriculum.
Workforce issues
Rural areas feel the effects of general surgeon shortage most acutely. To ensure that the College is better able to address the challenges that rural surgical practice poses, the College established a new Advisory Council for Rural Surgery.
And, to help surgeons make smart decisions as the trend toward hospital employment for physicians continues to grow, the ACS developed a new resource titled Surgeons as Institutional Employees: A Strategic Look at the Dimensions of Surgeons as Employees of Hospitals. This document mailed with the February 2013 Bulletin.
Communications
The College continues to modernize its communications vehicles. In September 2012, the College released the first issue of the newly redesigned Bulletin and is now in the process of working with consultants to reconstruct the public website (www.facs.org) and to integrate the members’ portal into the main site. To increase the visibility of the College’s advocacy efforts, the ACS last summer launched a monthly e-newsletter, The ACS Advocate.
Looking forward
The ACS is continuing to develop proactive solutions to the challenges facing surgeons. Your continued input on how we can address your concerns is always welcome.
Dr. Hoyt is Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
As we commemorate the American College of Surgeons’ Centennial, the leadership and staff continue to develop and engage in initiatives designed to ensure that members of the College are best positioned to continuing providing quality surgical care for the next 100 years.
With respect to advocacy and health policy, the College remains at the forefront of efforts to repeal and replace the flawed sustainable growth rate formula used to calculate Medicare physician payment. Importantly, the College has been working on a proposal to replace the SGR with a value-based update, which emphasizes that value = quality/cost.
The ACS is also looking at alternative methods of resolving medical liability claims. We hosted a Medical Liability Summit in October, and articles based on the presentations given at the meeting will be published in a special issue of the Bulletin this March.
Advocacy
In addition, the College has successfully nominated Fellows to serve on panels that are advising the government on quality of care issues. Last year, ACS nominee Stephen B. Edge, MD, FACS, was appointed co-chair of the National Quality Forum’s Cancer Maintenance Endorsement Project, and Frank Opelka, MD, FACS, Associate Medical Director of the Division of Advocacy and Health Policy, was appointed chair of the Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement.
Quality improvement
The College’s National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) continues to grow in size and stature. More than 500 hospitals now participate in ACS NSQIP, and data promulgated through this outcome measurement system were key in the completion of a project that the College conducted last year with the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare aimed at reducing colorectal surgical site infections. A total of 135 SSIs were averted at seven health care institutions that participated in the demonstration project, saving those facilities more $3.7 million. The Centers for Disease Control and ACS NSQIP also have entered into a formal agreement to study SSI. Additionally, approximately 30% of ACS NSQIP hospitals are participating in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services public reporting pilot program, Hospital Compare.
The Rapid Quality Reporting System has enabled Commission on Cancer–accredited programs to better adhere to five NQF-endorsed quality performance measures. Recognizing the potential value of this program, CMS recently contracted with the ACS to implement RQRS at 11 cancer centers that support public reporting through Hospital Compare.
At press time, ACS leaders had completed visits to 12 cities to discuss how quality-improvement efforts enhance surgical patient safety and reduce costs as part of the College’s Inspiring Quality initiative. With the assistance of Weber Shandwick, we also released the video Driven, which explores how surgical leaders and other innovators over the past 100 years have inspired quality by advancing surgical care.
Education
The College continues to establish benchmarks and standards in surgical education. This past year, new emphasis was placed on helping surgeons and residents to navigate transitions in their careers. Perhaps the most significant example of our efforts to assist residents as they transition into practice is the development of fellowships for young surgeons who are leaving training and entering into general surgery practice. The College will begin pilot testing the ACS Transition to Practice Fellowship in General Surgery on July 1 at five institutions in regions of the United States that currently are underserved by general surgeons. Furthermore, the ACS is collaborating with the Association of Program Directors in Surgery and the Association for Surgical Education to develop a new Entering Surgery Resident Prep Curriculum.
Workforce issues
Rural areas feel the effects of general surgeon shortage most acutely. To ensure that the College is better able to address the challenges that rural surgical practice poses, the College established a new Advisory Council for Rural Surgery.
And, to help surgeons make smart decisions as the trend toward hospital employment for physicians continues to grow, the ACS developed a new resource titled Surgeons as Institutional Employees: A Strategic Look at the Dimensions of Surgeons as Employees of Hospitals. This document mailed with the February 2013 Bulletin.
Communications
The College continues to modernize its communications vehicles. In September 2012, the College released the first issue of the newly redesigned Bulletin and is now in the process of working with consultants to reconstruct the public website (www.facs.org) and to integrate the members’ portal into the main site. To increase the visibility of the College’s advocacy efforts, the ACS last summer launched a monthly e-newsletter, The ACS Advocate.
Looking forward
The ACS is continuing to develop proactive solutions to the challenges facing surgeons. Your continued input on how we can address your concerns is always welcome.
Dr. Hoyt is Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons.
