The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
CHH services receive accreditations, upgrades
WINSTED » Charlotte Hungerford Hospital (CHH)’s laboratory, blood drawing, and sleep services at 115 Spencer Street in the Winsted Health Center have received accreditations from respective professional certification agencies.
The Accreditation Committee of the College of American Pathologists (CAP) awarded accreditation to the hospital’s laboratory services in Winsted based on results of a thorough on-site inspection. The U.S. federal government recognizes the CAP Laboratory Accreditation Program, begun in the early 1960s, as being equal-to or more-stringent-than the government’s own inspection program.
The accreditation process is designed to ensure that the highest standards of care are provided for all laboratory patients. The process includes inspectors that examine the laboratory’s records and quality control of procedures for the preceding two years, laboratory staff qualifications, equipment, facilities, safety program and record, and overall management.
As the leading organization with 18,000 board-certified pathologists, the College of American Pathologists (CAP) serves patients, pathologists, and the public by fostering and advocating excellence in the practice of pathology and laboratory medicine worldwide. The CAP’s Laboratory Improvement Programs, initiated 65 years ago, currently have customers in more than 100 countries, accrediting 7,800 laboratories and providing proficiency testing to 20,000 laboratories worldwide.
The CHH Sleep Center located in Winsted has achieved a five-year accreditation from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) which is the country’s only professional organization dedicated solely to the field of sleep medicine and promoting excellence in research, healthcare and education in this medical subspecialty.
Sleep Center accreditation standards are designed to assure quality and meet the requirements for referring physicians and patients. The requirements of an AASM accreditation include comfortable and hygienic patient environments, trained and knowledgeable technical staff, monitoring of quality assurance (Q A) parameters and adherence to the devised Q A plan, and a sleep specialist at the facility to review sleep studies conducted, among others.
The sleep center features four patient rooms staffed by trained registered technologists who perform the sleep studies. Last fall, the CHH Auxiliary and Winsted’s Auxiliary For Community Health donated funding that was used to purchase technology upgrades needed for sleep apnea testing. Developed by Phillips Respironics, the Center’s Alice 5 Sleep System requires periodic enhancements and the funds helped cover the costs of new equipment, hardware and software installation and training. This system continues to gain worldwide recognition for its advanced sleep analysis capabilities and helps facilitate a more efficient process for sleep technicians and generates more comprehensive data for the diagnosis of disorders.
Patients should be evaluated by their primary care physician prior to having a sleep study, and a physician’s referral is required. Most health insurance plans including Medicare cover sleep studies, which are recognized as standard medical diagnostic procedures. The Sleep Center is located on the ground floor of the Winsted Health Center at 115 Spencer Street in Winsted. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 860-738-6620.
Laboratory and blood drawing services in Winsted are available Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. and Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. with no appointments needed. For more information call 860-738-6658.
“An accreditation by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine is recognized by both physicians and patients, on a national level. It is a reflection of the high quality and excellence of sleep labs. We are so pleased that our sleep center received this recognition and thanks our friends at the hospital and Winsted community auxiliaries for their commitment to ensuring we have the best technology available for our patients,” said Patty Sullivan-Polletta, CHH Administrative Director of Ancillary Services,” in a written statement.
CHH Emergency and Medical Care is part of The Charlotte Hungerford Hospital family of services located at 115 Spencer Street. It provides hospital-level, community-based health care and emergency services to northwest Connecticut and southwest Massachusetts including emergency, X-ray, laboratory, cardiopulmonary rehabilitation, digital mammography, and sleep evaluation services.
Visit www.charlottehungertford.org for information.