Friday, December 28, 2012
SYRACUSE – St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center’s Echocardiography Laboratory (Echo Lab) has been granted a three-year term of accreditation in echocardiography in the area of adult transthoracic by the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC). Established more than 30 years ago, St. Joseph’s Echo Lab employs five cardiac sonographers and two echo technicians.
Accreditation by the IAC means that St. Joseph’s Echo Lab has undergone a thorough review of its operational and technical components by a panel of experts. The IAC grants accreditation only to those facilities that are found to be providing quality patient care, in compliance with national standards through a comprehensive application process including detailed case study review.
IAC accreditation is a “seal of approval” that patients can rely on as an indication that the facility has been carefully critiqued on all aspects of its operations considered relevant by medical experts in the field of echocardiography.
Echocardiography provides early detection of life threatening heart disorders and other diseases. Echocardiograms are noninvasive tests that use sound waves to produce detailed images of the heart’s size, structure and motion. It also can measure blood volume and the speed and direction of blood flow through the heart.
IAC accreditation is widely respected within the medical community and is required in some states and regions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, as well as some private insurers.
St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center is a non-profit, 431-bed hospital and health care system providing services to patients from Onondaga and 15 surrounding counties. Through prevention programs and the latest diagnostic treatment procedures, St. Joseph's works with patients to achieve optimum long-term health. A 14-time winner of the National Research Corporation Consumer Choice award, St. Joseph’s is affiliated with Franciscan Companies and sponsored by the Sisters of St. Francis. For more information on St. Joseph’s programs and services, call the Resource Line at 315-703-2138 or 1-888-STJOES1.