A lot can change in 25 years, but one thing that’s stayed consistent is Temple Health’s Vascular Laboratory’s success at providing the highest-quality care to our patients. That’s why we recently celebrated 25 consecutive years of accreditation by the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC), which earned us the organization’s Silver Award.
“25 years of accreditation is a significant achievement,” says Patrick Kelly, MBA, RVT, Senior Administrator for Neurosciences, the EEG Laboratory, and PM&R. “The IAC sets the standard for vascular testing throughout the country, and earning the Silver Award shows that we’re consistently meeting and exceeding that standard and utilizing best practices. Our patients deserve exceptional care, and IAC accreditation is independent verification that this is what we’re providing.”
“Earning the Silver Award lets patients know that we maintain a standard of care that’s fairly unique in our region,” says Frank Schmieder, MD, FACS, Interim Chief of the Division of Vascular Surgery in the Department of Surgery at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine; Surgical Director of the Temple Heart & Vascular Institute; and Professor of Clinical Surgery. “There are many vascular labs that don’t have this degree of accreditation. This is an outstanding report card for all our years of service.”
The Highest-Quality Care, Everywhere
To earn IAC accreditation, each member of the Vascular Laboratory team has to submit case studies to demonstrate that they’re adhering to the protocols the IAC has established, and that their images meet quality standards. The Laboratory becomes eligible for re-accreditation every three years, and the process itself takes four to five months.
“Accreditation makes us look back on our work and think about what we want to improve,” says Dr. Schmieder. “We always want to be performing at the highest level, which is very beneficial for our patients, because they can be confident that their studies are being done accurately and that we’re holding ourselves to the highest standard.”
The accreditation process has also required standardization across Temple. “We do our accreditation as a Health System,” Kelly explains. “That’s why we’ve standardized our equipment, protocols, software, and training at each of our campuses. As a result, you can get the same quality of study at Jeanes, Northeastern, or TUH-Main Campus.”
A 25-Year Record of Success
As the Vascular Laboratory Team looks to the future, they see numerous opportunities for expanding their patient base and continuing to provide the highest level of care. “We’ve grown tremendously over the last 25 years,” Dr. Schmieder says. “Now that we’ve acquired Temple Health-Chestnut Hill Hospital, I’m excited to bring our expertise to that site.”
“I was the Manager of the Vascular Laboratory when we were first accredited in 1999,” Kelly says. “In 2029, we’ll be eligible for the IAC’s Gold Award for 30 consecutive years of accreditation. It’s been an incredible journey, and we’ve been so fortunate to have such great technologists and medical staff. Without them, none of this would have been possible, and I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved together.”