The Accreditation for Cardiovascular Excellence (ACE) is the exclusive international provider of interventional cardiology, electrophysiology, congenital heart disease and endovascular catheterization lab accreditation, and a valuable resource for asserting a commitment to the highest standards of care in invasive cardiology. Since 2011, (ACE) has reviewed the structure, internal processes, patient safety practices, and clinical outcomes of cardiac catheterization laboratories. To achieve ACE accreditation, facilities must demonstrate compliance with rigorous ACE quality standards that are based on published guidelines, expert consensus documents, and scientific data.
But what does accreditation mean on a practical level? Cardiac catheterization laboratory administrators, regulators, payers, and other stakeholders frequently ask about the value of the ACE review process to facilities that have been accredited through these reviews.
For the first time, stakeholders have quality metrics that confirm the value of achieving full ACE accreditation for diagnostic cardiac catheterization and percutaneous coronary intervention (cath/PCI) programs. Three new studies presented at the 2015 Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) Scientific Sessions in May 2015, validate the diverse benefits of ACE accreditation for cardiac catheterization laboratories, clinicians, and patients. [1-3]
While no cath lab is perfect, these studies indicate that ACE-accredited facilities are significantly more likely than non-accredited centers to meet nationally established standards for multiple structural, process-related, and procedural domains. In addition to providing credible data for stakeholders, these studies provide important guidance on how to evaluate cath/PCI programs against accepted quality standards.