Editorial comment. With the Joint Commission and the medical centers's protocols, urologists not only offer excellent patient safety, but also improve patient satisfaction with urologic care.

摘要

Although seemingly simple and intuitively obvious, this publication is nevertheless of critical importance for urologists in both academic and private practice. The Joint Commission, as noted, has published the "Universal Protocol for Preventing Wrong Site, Wrong Procedure, Wrong Person Surgery" to help prevent medical errors and improve accountability in both diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. These requirements are becoming increasingly onerous for many practices. In our own institution, an attending faculty urologist must be present at the start of all procedures for a "preinduction time out" for diagnostic cystoscopies and transrectal needle biopsies of the prostate. Clearly, faculty input and oversight are integral parts of all urologic procedures; however, the classification of these less-invasive procedures in the same category as major surgery causes significant problems for patient care and efficient patient flow. Although patient safety is in fact paramount, the dearth of urologists, attempts to bring efficiency, and increased patient numbers to our practices require that urologists delegate non-medical tasks to others. To this end, many office-based procedures are organized, set in motion, and initiated by allied healthcare personnel in an effort to be more responsive to patients and their time requirements. Arguments for less formal treatment of these office-based diagnostic procedures can only occur with peer-reviewed data from well-constructed studies. With these and other similar data in hand, urologists can approach the Joint Commission and their medical centers with protocols that will not only offer excellent patient safety, but also facilitate patient flow and improve patient satisfaction with urologic care.