title: The Joint Commission's disease-specific care certification for destination therapy ventricular assist devices.
abstract: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced that all hospitals implanting ventricular assist devices are required to have certification from the The Joint Commission for disease-specific care destination therapy with a ventricular assist device effective March 27, 2009, in order to receive Medicare reimbursement for services rendered to patients who have devices implanted for destination therapy. On February 23, 2007, The Joint Commission released the certification requirements for ventricular assist devices implanted for destination therapy in an 8-page document so that hospitals could prepare to meet the 2009 certification deadline. The Artificial Heart Program of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center undertook a multidisciplinary project, under the guidance of the nurse coordinator, to prepare the hospital and program for a precertification survey by The Joint Commission for disease-specific destination therapy ventricular assist device certification. The Presbyterian Hospital Artificial Heart Program was awarded The Joint Commission's device-specific certification for destination therapy with ventricular assist devices in June 2008.
authors.affiliation: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Artificial Heart Program, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, USA. lockardk@upmc.edu
authors.forename: Kathleen L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Lockard
authors.forename: Ashley
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Weimer
authors.forename: Genevieve
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: O'Shea
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Driggers
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Conroy
authors.forename: Jeffrey J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Teuteberg
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Winowich
authors.forename: Douglas
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lohmann
authors.forename: Richard D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Schaub
authors.forename: Donald A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Severyn
authors.forename: Robert L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Kormos
mesh_terms: D002300:Cardiac Care Facilities / Q000592:standards*; D002568:Certification; D006353:Heart-Assist Devices; D006801:Humans; D007318:Inservice Training; D007591:Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations; D006278:Medicare; D010414:Pennsylvania; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D016730:Program Development; D019919:Prosthesis Implantation / Q000592:standards*; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care; D014481:United States