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The everyday excellence of BWH’s Pathology Department gained high praise from the Joint Commission following its 10-day laboratory survey that concluded Feb. 9 with BWH Pathology remaining fully accredited with only two areas identified for improvement.
The Joint Commission surveyor used tracer methodology to follow approximately 50 patients’ records and their specimens through more than 30 laboratories and point-of-care testing sites throughout the main campus, 850 Boylston St., and Brookside and Southern Jamaica Plain community health centers. The surveyor scrutinized the Clinical Laboratory, Transfusion Services and Anatomic Pathology divisions of the Pathology Department and approximately 30 laboratory testing sites, including ORs, Cardiovascular Diagnostic and Interventional Center, the NICU and Interventional Radiology areas.
“The key to our success—and the Joint Commission surely made note of this—is our staff. Our medical technologists, clinicians and administrative laboratory staff are committed to excellence, and because of that, we have been able to establish and maintain an environment known for safety,” Michael Gimbrone, MD, chairman of Pathology, said.
More than 100 BWHers, including medical and radiology technologists, laboratory managers and staff, the managers and staff in ambulatory labs, nurses and physicians, directly responded to questions from the Joint Commission surveyor.
“We received an overwhelmingly positive report, and we remain committed to improving the quality and scope of services we provide to our patients and their families,” said Frederick J. Schoen, MD, PhD, vice chairman of Pathology.
“Performance like this can only be achieved through a continuous effort and a singular commitment to service excellence by our staff,” said Milenko Tanasijevic, MD, director of the Clinical Laboratories Division.
The Joint Commission conducts its laboratory accreditation surveys every two years independently of the triennial hospital surveys. BWH labs could face an unannounced, one-day validation survey anytime in the next year, and the next biennial 10-day survey—also unannounced—could come between June 2008 and July 2009.