Profession
New office-based surgery rules take effect in Arizona
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Feb. 18, 2008
Arizona has new regulations for MDs who perform office-based surgeries using sedation. The rules, developed by the Arizona Medical Board and approved last month, cover medical procedures involving sedation and conducted in a physician's office or other outpatient setting that is not part of a hospital or ambulatory surgical center. The rules state that offices must have equipment necessary to safely perform the procedure, administer and monitor sedation, and rescue a patient who enters a deeper state of sedation than intended.
Doctors now must ensure that staff members who assist them in such procedures have sufficient education, training and experience.
In addition, the physician must make sure the procedure can be safely performed in his or her office so the patient is able to leave within 24 hours. The rules prohibit doctors from doing a procedure using sedation in their office if the patient has a condition that indicates surgery should not be done there or will require inpatient services at a hospital.
After surgery, a doctor must be in the office and be able to respond to an emergency until the patient's postsedation monitoring is discontinued.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2008/02/18/prbf0218.htm.