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by Astrid Fiano, Writer
Ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) are outpatient facilities that provide surgical treatment that doesn't require an overnight stay.

Nearly half of the 50 states require license or accreditation of ASCs, and some states require both. Three accrediting bodies perform the ASC survey, including checking to see that the facility has proper manuals, equipment, calibrations; and staff training on equipment, fire codes, emergency preparations, etc. There are around 1,800 national standards applied by the Joint Commission, the American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities, Inc., and the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care.

In addition, some vendors can help with the process. For example, the Compliance Doctor offers to go into the facility and get them prepared for licensing and/or accreditation, telling the facility what it needs and helping them through the process. The firm says it can save centers thousands of dollars on accreditation/re-accreditation programs.

"Don't pay consultants large sums of money to get your ASC accredited," said Compliance Doctor, LLC CEO Troy Lair. Lair reported that, for as little as $5,000, a center can obtain and maintain its required accreditation. Some other third party consultants charge as much as $25,000.

"With the economic slowdown of many specialties, [we] recognize that during economic meltdowns, programs need to be customized," said Lair. "For national clients--surgeons anywhere in the U.S.--our packages are tailored to meet needs exactly."

Note that Medicare certification is a separate process but Medicare gives the three organizations permission to conduct Medicare certification at the same time, saving the trouble of two processes. The Compliance Doctor also helps with the Medicare cert. Of course, private insurers usually accept Medicare standards for certification as Medicare standards are often the toughest.

There are other third party competitors to prepare ASCs for licensing/accreditation. The Compliance Doctor stands out, according to Mr. Lair, because of the special care taken to "hand hold" the facilities all the way through the process. In addition, the Compliance Doctor has had a 100% success rate thus far.

The Compliance Doctor also handles compliance preparation for urgent care and long term care facilities.