Adirondack Medical Center recognized for joint surgery program
A North Country hospital has earned national distinction when it comes to joint replacement surgery. When you find out you need surgery, you want it to be a smooth ride. That's something they strive for in the Joint Center at Adirondack Medical Center.
Adirondack Medical Center recognized for joint surgery program
POSTED: July 10, 2020
SARANAC LAKE, N.Y. (WCAX) A North Country hospital has earned national distinction when it comes to joint replacement surgery.
When you find out you need surgery, you want it to be a smooth ride. That's something they strive for in the Joint Center at Adirondack Medical Center.
The hospital was recently certified by the Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program, HFAP, for its comprehensive joint replacement surgeries.
"A stamp of approval that says, 'Hey, things here are done to code,'" said Dr. Bart Szczech, the hospital's director of joint replacement surgery. "Right now we are proud to say we are one of the first institutions nationwide to have this and we're definitely the first in New York state."
Szczech says they do about 400 orthopedic surgeries in a year, but there were never regulations when it came to the centers for joint replacement. "When you walk into a house or a hotel, you expect it to be built up to code. Those standards didn't really exist for joint replacement," he said.
Szczech worked on the HFAP national board to come up with a national standard when it comes to centers or institutions for orthopedic surgeries. "What this allowed us to do is create policies and procedures that make sure there are various check points and safety nets, so none of this accidentally gets dropped," he said.
It took a team to come up with this check list including doctors, nurses, or anyone who works with a patient from start to finish in their medical procedure. "We work very hard to make sure that everything we do is coordinated so that no time is lost in restoring patients' function," Szczech said.
Making sure the patient is fitted with the best surgery, making sure the process goes smoothly, and that every thing post-op is set up for success. "What we try to do is offer big city medicine right in your own backyard," Szczech said.
The Adirondack Medical Center is one of the first with this accreditation and they look forward to seeing other hospitals in the region working on their standards to get the accreditation too.