New wrong-site surgery prevention toolkit seeing traction in ASCs

Editor's Note

Ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are increasingly adopting a new wrong-site surgery prevention toolkit, introduced by the ASC Quality Collaboration (ASCQC) in late 2024, ASC Focus January 17 reports. Designed to improve patient safety, this complimentary resource is packed with materials tailored to address the unique challenges of preventing surgical errors in the ASC setting.

The toolkit includes a range of resources, such as assessment tools, guidelines, training materials, and monitoring templates. These materials, developed with contributions from major healthcare organizations like the World Health Organization and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, aim to provide ASCs with actionable strategies for mitigating wrong-site surgery risks.

Designed to integrate seamlessly into existing safety protocols, the toolkit allows ASCs to strengthen their current practices. Resources such as the recently developed wrong-surgery reporting guidance document provide additional layers of standardization and accountability. This proactive approach encourages ASCs to review and refine their policies to arrive at a comprehensive strategy to prevent wrong-site surgeries.

ASCQC identified wrong-site surgery as a key focus due to its status as a measure tracked by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting Program. The ASCQC’s benchmarking program also reports on this metric. Despite its relatively low occurrence, wrong-site surgery carries significant repercussions for patients, families, and surgical teams, highlighting the need for robust prevention strategies.

The toolkit is part of ASCQC’s larger effort to provide resources that support safe, high-quality surgical care. ASCs can access the toolkit for free on the ASCQC website, where it joins a collection of patient safety resources aimed at helping ASCs maintain compliance and enhance their overall safety culture.