March 27, 2019 — Patients seeking surgical treatment for severe obesity and related conditions have access to a nationally accredited program meeting the highest standards for patient safety and quality of care in the North Jersey area.
James McGinty, MD, chief of surgery at Englewood Health, specializing in laparoscopic bariatric surgery, recently announced its bariatric surgery program received reaccreditation as a distinguished three-year Comprehensive Center under the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program (MBSAQIP®), a joint program of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS).
This reaccreditation reinforces Englewood Hospital’s commitment to providing and supporting quality improvement and patient safety efforts for metabolic and bariatric surgery patients. The MBSAQIP Standards ensure that bariatric surgical patients receive a multidisciplinary program—not just a surgical procedure—which improves patient outcomes and long-term success. The accredited center offers preoperative and postoperative care designed specifically for their severely obese patients.
Englewood Health’s commitment to quality care begins with appropriately trained staff and the leadership of surgeons who participate in meetings throughout the year to review its outcomes. They seek continuous improvement to enhance the structure, process, and outcomes of the center. Englewood Hospital was specifically recognized this year for its excellent leadership, strong hospital support, culture for doing bariatric surgery, and state-of-the-art facilities.
“I am proud to be a part of Englewood Health and this team of caregivers who really provide world-class care to patients suffering with obesity,” Dr. McGinty said. “This achievement is largely due to the leadership and support of the bariatric surgery team.”
To earn the MBSAQIP designation, Englewood Hospital met essential criteria for staffing, training, facility infrastructure, and protocols for care. The center also participates in a national data registry that yields semiannual reports on the quality of its processes and outcomes, identifying opportunities for continuous quality improvement.
After submitting an application, centers seeking MBSAQIP Accreditation undergo an extensive site visit by an experienced bariatric surgeon, who reviews the center’s structure, process, and clinical outcomes data. Centers are awarded a specific designation depending on how many patients they serve annually, the type of procedures they provide, and whether they provide care for patients under age 18.
In the United States, around 15.5 million people suffer from severe obesity, according to the National Institutes of Health, and the numbers continue to increase. Obesity increases the risks of morbidity and mortality because of the diseases and conditions commonly associated with it, such as type II diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease, among other health risks.
Metabolic and bariatric surgical procedures have proven to be effective in the reduction of comorbid conditions related to severe obesity. Working with ASMBS, the ACS expanded this quality program for bariatric surgery centers so that it can assist bariatric patients in identifying those centers that provide optimal surgical care.