American College Of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Research Articles

The American College of Surgeons: an enduring commitment to quality and patient care

This paper describes the American College of Surgeons' 100-plus-year commitment to improving quality and patient care. It summarizes programs that the College established a century ago to improve patient care, including the Hospital Standardization Program, and new initiatives, such as the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. The College's longstanding experience with quality improvement programs is enabling the organization to play a critical and influential role in helping to ensure that health care reforms, including those in the Affordable Care Act, are implemented in a way that best serves that interests of the surgical patient. Through a combination of these data analysis systems and the application of a finely tuned set of values, the College has become a respected voice in quality and patient safety. The ultimate goal is to create an environment where high value and high reliability take precedence over high volume and where all health care professionals play an active leadership role in delivering optimal, coordinated care. This article further describes how the surgical culture can be reshaped to meet these evolving needs and demands. The American College of Surgeons (ACS) has a longstanding commitment to improving the quality of surgical care through outcome measurement, standards setting, accreditation, and educational activities. This legacy has enabled the ACS to play an influential role in recent developments related to implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Medicare physician payment reform.

Direct-to-implant breast reconstruction: An analysis of 1612 cases from the ACS-NSQIP surgical outcomes database

There is continued debate about the outcomes of direct-to-implant (DTI) breast reconstruction when compared to a two-stage expander/implant approach. The purpose of this study was to examine outcomes after DTI reconstruction utilising the American College of Surgeons–National Surgical Quality Improvement (ACS-NSQIP) database. This study reviewed the 2005–2010 ACS-NSQIP databases identifying encounters with common procedural terminology codes for DTI (19340) (mastectomy and immediate implant placement). A composite variable of “major surgical complications” (deep infection, return to OR, device loss) was used as the dependent variable in the analysis. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess for pre- and intraoperative factors associated with the occurrence of “major surgical complications”. Overall, 1612 patients underwent one stage, DTI reconstruction with an average age of 50.8 ± 10.7 years with a body mass index (BMI) (kg/m2) of 26.9 ± 6.3 kg/m2. The incidence of major surgical complications was 9%. A multivariate regression analysis revealed obesity (OR = 1.54, p = 0.03), active smoking (OR = 1.60, p = 0.044), and prolonged operative time (>1 SD above average) (OR = 1.88, p = 0.002) were associated with surgical morbidity. The results of the analysis emphasize that DTI-based breast reconstruction can be an excellent option for a specific group of patients. Careful pre-operative patient selection will optimise outcomes, and caution must be used in assessing suitability of DTI in obese patients and active smokers.

Analysis of the NSQIP Database in 676 Patients Undergoing Laryngopharyngectomy: The Impact of Flap Reconstruction

Assess impact of reconstructive procedures on patients undergoing laryngopharyngectomy and to determine whether 30-day postoperative morbidity and mortality varied between patients who underwent flap reconstruction and those who did not. Retrospective analysis of the prospectively collected American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement (ACS-NSQIP) database. Tertiary medical center. We reviewed the 2005-2011 ACS-NSQIP database to identify patients undergoing laryngectomy and/or pharyngectomy. Bivariate analysis was done to compare preoperative variables and postoperative outcomes between the flap reconstruction group and non-reconstruction group. Chi-square tests were used for categorical variables and t-tests for continuous variables. Logistic regression analysis was performed to calculate odds ratio to account for potential confounders. To create a valid logistic analysis model, F-test was used to determine whether certain variables should be included in the model. Six hundred seventy-six patients were included in our study; 213 patients received concurrent flap reconstruction whereas 463 did not. After risk adjustment, analyses revealed no statistically significant difference in wound complication, minor morbidity, and mortality between the 2 groups. The flap reconstruction cohort showed significantly longer operative times (8.09 ± 3.36 hours vs 5.63 ± 3.47 hours; P = .001) and higher major morbidity rate (OR = 5.906, 95% CI, 3.131-11.139, P = .001). This is the first comprehensive analysis of flap reconstruction for laryngopharyngeal defects using the ACS-NSQIP registry. Additional measures involved in flap reconstruction are associated with an increase in major morbidity but not mortality. An understanding of these variables may optimize the decision-making process for patients undergoing laryngectomy and/or pharyngectomy.

Mortality Following Colorectal Procedures: Comparison of Data from the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Practice-Based Learning System Case Log and the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program

Mortality Following Colorectal Procedures: Comparison of Data from the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Practice-Based Learning System Case Log and the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program

The Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative: a legacy of Shukri Khuri

Background From the legacy of Shukri Khuri, we have successfully implemented a regional quality collaborative in Michigan, the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative (MSQC). Methods The MSQC represents a partnership between the American College of Surgeons (ACS), 34 Michigan hospitals, and a large private payer. It is based on a “pay for participation” rather than a “pay for performance” model. Although based on the ACS National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) platform, this collaborative has a unique infrastructure for information technology, collaboration, and ad hoc quality improvement (QI) initiatives. Results Specific initiatives have been implemented with colectomy, myocardial ischemia, and surgical site infection (SSI). Based on these initiatives, best practices have been implemented. Adherence to these best practices is modest, but despite this, there has been significant QI. Conclusions The improved quality was likely the result of diverse process measures, many not yet recognized in the literature, which came together effectively in specific hospitals.