James L. Achord

American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Clinical Competence statement on stress testing: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association/American College of Physicians--American Society of Internal Medicine Task Force on Clinical Competence.

The granting of clinical staff privileges is one of the primary mechanisms used by institutions to uphold the quality of care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations requires that the granting of initial or continuing medical staff privileges be based on assessment of applicants against professional criteria specified in medical staff bylaws. Physicians and other healthcare providers are thus charged with identifying the criteria that constitute professional competence and with evaluating their peers accordingly. The process of evaluating clinical knowledge and competence is often constrained by the evaluator’s own knowledge and ability to elicit the appropriate information, a problem that is compounded by the growing number of highly specialized procedures for which privileges are requested. The American College of Cardiology (ACC)/American Heart Association (AHA)/American College of Physicians–American Society of Internal Medicine (ACP-ASIM) Task Force on Clinical Competence was formed in 1998 to develop recommendations to attain and maintain the cognitive and technical skills necessary for the competent performance of a specific cardiovascular service, procedure, or technology. These documents are evidence based, and where evidence is not available, expert opinion is called upon to formulate recommendations. Indications and contraindications for specific services or procedures are not included in the scope of these documents. Recommendations are intended to assist those who must judge the competence of cardiovascular healthcare providers entering practice for the first time and/or those who are in practice and undergo periodic review of their practice expertise. Because the assessment of competence is complex and multidimensional, isolated recommendations contained herein may not necessarily be sufficient or appropriate for judging overall competence. Board specialty certification is not a required part of these recommendations but is another measure of expertise. This statement is a revision and extension of the previous ACP/ACC/AHA Task Force Statement on Clinical Competence in Exercise Testing. …

American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Clinical Competence Statement on Stress Testing

The granting of clinical staff privileges is one of the primary mechanisms used by institutions to uphold the quality of care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations requires that the granting of initial or continuing medical staff privileges be based on assessment of applicants against professional criteria specified in medical staff bylaws. Physicians and other healthcare providers are thus charged with identifying the criteria that constitute professional competence and with evaluating their peers accordingly. The process of evaluating clinical knowledge and competence is often constrained by the evaluator’s own knowledge and ability to elicit the appropriate information, a problem that is compounded by the growing number of highly specialized procedures for which privileges are requested. The American College of Cardiology (ACC)/American Heart Association (AHA)/American College of Physicians–American Society of Internal Medicine (ACP-ASIM) Task Force on Clinical Competence was formed in 1998 to develop recommendations to attain and maintain the cognitive and technical skills necessary for the competent performance of a specific cardiovascular service, procedure, or technology. These documents are evidence based, and where evidence is not available, expert opinion is called upon to formulate recommendations. Indications and contraindications for specific services or procedures are not included in the scope of these documents. Recommendations are intended to assist those who must judge the competence of cardiovascular healthcare providers entering practice for the first time and/or those who are in practice and undergo periodic review of their practice expertise. Because the assessment of competence is complex and multidimensional, isolated recommendations contained herein may not necessarily be sufficient or appropriate for judging overall competence. Board specialty certification is not a required part of these recommendations but is another measure of expertise. This statement is a revision and extension of the previous ACP/ACC/AHA Task Force Statement on Clinical Competence in Exercise Testing. …

American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association clinical competence statement on invasive electrophysiology studies, catheter ablation, and cardioversion: A report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association/American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine Task Force on Clinical Competence

The granting of clinical staff privileges to physicians is a primary mechanism used by institutions to uphold the quality of patient care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations requires that the granting of continuing medical staff privileges be based on assessments of

American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Clinical Competence Statement on Invasive Electrophysiology Studies, Catheter Ablation, and Cardioversion

The granting of clinical staff privileges to physicians is a primary mechanism used by institutions to uphold the quality of patient care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations requires that the granting of continuing medical staff privileges be based on assessments of applicants in accordance with professional criteria specified in the medical staff bylaws. Physicians and other healthcare providers are thus charged with identifying the criteria that constitute professional competence and with evaluating their peers accordingly. The process of evaluating clinical knowledge and competence is often constrained by the evaluator’s knowledge and ability to elicit the appropriate information, a problem that is compounded by the growing number of highly specialized procedures for which privileges are requested. The American College of Cardiology (ACC)/American Heart Association (AHA)/American College of Physicians–American Society of Internal Medicine (ACP-ASIM) Task Force on Clinical Competence was formed in 1998 to develop recommendations to attain and maintain the cognitive and technical skills necessary for the competency performance of a specific cardiovascular service, procedure, or technology. These documents are evidence based, and where evidence is not available, expert opinion is used to formulate recommendations. Indications and contraindications for specific services or procedures are not included in the scope of these guidelines. Recommendations are intended to assist those who must judge the competence of cardiovascular healthcare providers who are entering practice for the first time and those who are in practice and undergo periodic review of their practice expertise. Because the assessment of competence is complex and multidimensional, the isolated recommendations given here may not be sufficient or appropriate for the judgment of overall competence. Board specialty certification is not a required part of these guidelines but rather is another measure of expertise. The ACC/AHA/ACP-ASIM Task Force on Clinical Competence makes every effort to avoid any actual or …

Clinical Competence in Electrocardiography

The selective granting of clinical staff privileges to physicians is one of the primary mechanisms used by institutions to uphold the quality of care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations requires that the granting of initial or continuing medical staff privileges be based on assessments of applicants against professional criteria that are specified in the medical staff bylaws. Physicians themselves are thus charged with identifying the criteria that constitute professional competence and with evaluating their peers on the basis of such criteria. Yet the process of evaluating a physician’s knowledge and competence is often constrained by the evaluator’s own knowledge base and ability to elicit the appropriate information, a problem that is compounded by the growing number of highly specialized procedures for which privileges are requested. This recommendation is one in a series developed to assist in the assessment of physician competence on a procedure-specific basis. The minimal education, training, experience, and cognitive skills necessary for proper interpretation of electrocardiography are specified; whenever possible, these are based on published data linking these factors with competence in certain procedures and, in the absence of such data, on consensus of expert opinion. They are applicable to any practice setting and can accommodate a variety of pathways that physicians might take to attain competence in the performance of specific procedures (see also Guide to the use of ACP statements on clinical competence. Ann Intern Med . 1987;107:588-589.) Introduced in 1903 by Einthoven, electrocardiography is the most commonly used laboratory procedure for the diagnosis of heart disease. As a record of electrical activity of the heart, it is a unique technology that provides information not readily obtained by other methods. The procedure is safe, there being essentially no risk to the patient; it is simple and reproducible; the record lends itself to …

Clinical competence in invasive cardiac electrophysiological studies. A statement for physicians from the ACP/ACC/AHA Task Force on Clinical Privileges in Cardiology.

T he granting of clinical staff privileges to physicians is one of the primary mechanisms used by institutions to uphold the quality of care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations requires that the granting of initial or continuing medical staff privileges be based on assessments of applicants against professional criteria that are specified in the medical staff bylaws. Physicians themselves are thus charged with identifying the criteria that constitute professional competence and with evaluating their peers accordingly. Yet the process of evaluating a physicians knowledge and competence is often constrained by the evaluators own knowledge and ability to elicit the appropriate information, problems that are compounded by the growing number of highly specialized procedures for which privileges are requested. This recommendation is one in a series developed by the American College of Physicians, the American College of Cardiology, and the American Heart Association to assist in the assessment of physician competence on a procedure-specific basis. The minimum education, training, experience, and cognitive and technical skills necessary for the competent performance of invasive cardiac electrophysiological studies (EPS) are specified. Whenever possible, these specifications are based on published data linking these factors with competence or, in the absence of such data, on the consensus of expert opinion. They are applicable to any practice setting and can accommodate a number of ways physicians might substantiate competence in the performance of specific procedures (see also Guide to the Use