Echocardiography Reaccreditation

Murphy Medical Center was granted a new three-year accreditation by the lntersocietal Commission for the Accreditation of Echocardiography Laboratories (ICAEL) on May 31, 2011. The hospital laboratory is one of a growing number of echocardiography laboratories in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico to be so recognized for its commitment to high-quality patient care and its provision of quality diagnostic testing.

“The reaccreditation process requires exacting, detailed quality assurance measures from correlation data to physician peer reviews, technical staff reviews to following strict policies and procedures,” said Amy Crisp, Technical Director of Cardiopulmonary.  “This can only be obtained with the compliance of the echo reading physicians and the echo technicians.  It takes the whole team to make it complete.”

Cardiac structure and flow information provided by echocardiographic testing is useful in the detection and management of many types of heart disease. This noninvasive test has become one of the standard diagnostic tools in cardiology with an estimated 10 million echocardiograms performed annually in the United States.

Echocardiography is a complex imaging technique that relies on the experience and training of both the physician and sonographer. Their interpretive and technical abilities determine the diagnostic accuracy of an echocardiographic examination.

The Intersocietal Commission for the Accreditation of Echocardiography Laboratories (ICAEL) has developed an accreditation program which evaluates the quality of these and other critical elements of an echocardiography laboratory.

Participation in the accreditation process is voluntary. Accreditation status signifies that the facility has been reviewed by an independent agency which recognizes the laboratory's commitment to quality testing for the diagnosis of heart disease.

One American dies every 32 seconds of cardiovascular disease, disorders of the heart and blood vessels. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, costing society over 83.7 billion dollars each year in health services, medications and lost work time due to disability.