Editor’s Page: Table Talk

Every time I talk with a surgical leader about their past survey experiences, I’m instantly transported back to the dinner table of my childhood home where my parents, both nurses, would routinely take turns fretting over an upcoming survey at their respective hospitals.

I’d listen carefully to this alien world of grown-up problems. The most common problem in that world seemed to be a visit from The Joint Commission. I don’t recall the details, but I can still remember the energy. It can best be described as the transformation of two normally mild-mannered, slightly dull adults into the character Anxiety from “Inside Out 2.”

I remember my tiny childhood brain thinking, If somehow I blow out my arm before getting drafted by the Phillies, I can never do what these two maniacs do when I grow up — that’s way, way, way too much pressure for someone like me...

Through the serendipitous hand of life, here I am, decades removed from my parents’ intense dinner conversations and my own childhood dreams of Major League stardom, listening to firsthand accounts of those in trenches of, or dealing with the shrapnel from, a surveyor visit.

I have nothing but the utmost respect for what those in the outpatient surgery community do day in and day out to navigate the minefield of complex regulations, stay compliant with myriad standards and guidelines and provide a sterling experience to individuals in their most vulnerable state — as surgical patients.

The challenges inherent in running an outpatient facility are a central theme in this issue. There’s our cover story on averting the most frequent accreditation survey deficiencies (page 14). Written by OSM Contributor Maria Marabito and featuring insights from current and former surveyors, ASC administrators and accreditation experts, this story covers a lot of ground.

Then Carson McCafferty makes her “Behind Closed Doors” debut with a humorous but heartfelt piece about the expectations versus the reality of becoming a new clinical director at an ASC (p. 56). Plus, our in-house ASC expert and former surgery center administrator Jeanine Watson demystifies the CMS quality reporting process (p. 53), we dive into water quality (p. 36), and we learn about what makes for a good ASC medical director (p. 50).

After my trip down memory lane, I called up my mom to ask about my recollections of those tense table talks, and she didn’t hesitate to say, “Oh, I remember, Hon. What’s this all about anyway?” Out of habit, I pressed for more details, and her first survey experience was something that really stood out. Here’s how my mom told it:

“Picture this, Hon — It’s 1988 and I have the perm, you remember the perm, dontchya? I know, I know. But it was very fashionable at the time. Anyway, my manager pulls me in to meet with the surveyor, a professional but no-nonsense nurse who was as blunt as they come, Hon. I remember thinking I should’ve got my hair done, but things were so busy back then, and you were kind of a handful, but I digress...

“Anyway, this lady listens to what I do, and then she says, ‘That’s very impressive, Mrs. Bilski, do you wear any other hats?’ And do you wanna know what I said? I said, ‘I certainly do — I’m a mother, I’m a cook, I’m a volunteer in my local community …’ And then I saw the look on my manager’s face, and I knew where I went wrong. She was talking about work hats, not life hats. I wanted to die, I was so embarrassed.

“Anyway, what was that date when we said we’d go to dinner with Uncle Carmen again?...” OSM