Quality Improvement and Patient Safety Committee

Members

John W. Baker, MD FASMBS
T. Javier Birriel, MD FASMBS
Sara Martin Del Campo, MD MS
Maher El Chaar, MD
Jennifer Colvin, MD
Michael Edwards, MD, Diversity & Inclusion Committee Liaison
Rama Rao Ganga, MBBS MS MRCS
Charmaine Gentles, DNP APRN CRNFA
Jon Gould, MD, Immediate Past Chair
Elizabeth M. Hechenbleikner, MD, FACS, FASMBS
Daniel B. Jones, MD MS FASMBS, Senior Past Chair

Onur Kutlu, MD
Kathleen Lak, MD
Shauna Levy, MD MS
Henry Lin, MD
Mark Mahan, DO
Karina McArthur, MD
C. Kenneth Mitchell, Jr., MD FASMBS
Geoffrey Nadzam, MD
Bradley Needleman, MD FASMBS
Nabeel Obeid, MD
Carl Pesta, DO FASMBS
Anthony T. Petrick, MD FASMBS, Immediate Past Chair

Kinga A. Powers, MD PhD FACS
Sarah Samreen, MD
Keri Seymour, DO
Konstantinos Spaniolas, MD
Andrea Stroud, MD MS
William A. Sweet, MD
Lawrence Tabone, MD
Oliver Varban, MD
R. Wesley Vosburg, MD FACS DABOM FASMBS
Eric Volckmann, MD
Noel Williams, MD FASMBS
Randal Zhou, MD
Yulia Zak, MD

ASMBS Staff Liaison

Leslie Vinson

Description

The Quality Improvement and Patient Safety Committee supports the mission and values of the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgeons by promoting continuous improvement in patient safety and risk reduction. These goals are achieved by the integration and coordination of patient safety initiatives of member surgeons. Patient safety initiatives are processes designed to reduce medical errors through process analysis and participation in quality improvement reporting. The Patient Safety Committee believes that the most effective manner to decrease surgeon exposure to liability is through improving patient safety. We acknowledge that patient safety will not eliminate risk for litigation. However, we are working to help our members by studying trends in malpractice suits, professional liability insurance costs, its availability, as well as identification of gaps in risk management, and the development of expert witness guidelines.

Mission

• To improve the care and treatment of people with obesity and related diseases
• To advance the science and understanding of metabolic and bariatric surgery
• To foster communication between health professionals on obesity and related conditions
• To be a highly valued specialty society that serves the educational and professional needs of our diverse membership

Objectives

• Identify gaps and members needs in patient safety, risk management and professional liability
• Identify and develop optimal resources for patient safety, risk management and professional liability
• Provide recommendations for promotion and dissemination of patient safety and risk management information
• Identify and employ process measures to identify and disseminate quality improvement initiatives

Committee Goals

Short-Term

1. ASMBS endorsed clinical pathway for Gastric Bypass
2. Publication of guidelines for ambulatory sleeve gastrectomy (on hold)
3. Publish consensus statement on MBSAQIP Participant Use Data File (PUF)

Mid-Term

1. Pursue alternate publication/online discussion options for Patient Safety/Malpractice Vignettes with Invited Discussion commentary
2. Utilize sleeve pathway to identify research initiatives and priorities
3. Intervention to Reduce VTE Rates to Promote Patient Safety
4. Collaboration with MBSAQIP’s Committee on Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery subcommittees: Standards and Verification and Data and Quality

Long-Term

1. Development of a longitudinal education curriculum for non-surgeon providers who care for our patients, i.e., Patient Safety Education programs for surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists
2. ASMBS Clinical Care Pathways Library
   • To include revisions, primary endoscopic procedures

   • Therapeutic interventions to weight regain

3. Partner with liability carriers to create patient safety curriculum to reduce exposure and injuries

4. Partner with insurers to establish a national presurgical pathway

5. Provide updates to members on important professional liability and patient safety issues as they arise

6. Develop guidelines and tools to provide membership with teleproctoring, simulators and team simulation to advance safer practices
7. Continue to develop resources for risk management
8. Help create a mechanism by which ASMBS can endorse and encourage high performing programs exhibiting patient safety and quality improvement in all aspects of bariatric care

Specific Projects that Achieve Goals and Objectives

Short-Term

1. RYGB pre-op pathway complete and submitted to SOARD May 2021
2. RYGB intra-op and post-op pathway sub-committees formed and work initiated
3. Ambulatory sleeve gastrectomy project in beginning stages (on hold); PUF files in review

Mid-Term

1. Continual literature review to update sleeve pathway as necessary
2. VTE Collaborative with ASMBS Research and Diversity & Inclusion Committees – committee members appointed; in progress with Research as lead
3. There will be communication at the 2022 ASMBS Annual Meeting regarding the new MBSAQIP QI project

Long-Term

1. The committee will develop these projects in the future; currently focusing on the three main projects detailed above in the Short-Term goals and Mid-Term goal #3

2021-2022 Completed Projects

1. “American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery: Pre-operative Care Pathway for Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass” Tammy L. Kindel, MD, PhD, Rama Rao Ganga, MD, John Wilder Baker, MD, Sabrena F. Noria, MD, PhD, Daniel B. Jones, MD, MS, Philip Omotosho, MD, Erick T. Volckmann, MD, Noel N. Williams, MD, Dana A. Telem, MD, MPH, Anthony T. Petrick, MD, Jon C. Gould, MD, MBA, A working product on behalf of the ASMBS Quality Improvement and Patient Safety Committee – Published in SOARD May 2021

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