(July 26, 2021): With COVID-19 case counts rising amid the spread of the Delta variant, more than 50 health care professional societies and organizations called for all health care employers to require their employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in a joint statement released today. These societies and organizations represent millions of workers throughout health and long-term care—from doctors and nurses to pharmacists and physician assistants, from public health workers and epidemiologists to long-term care, home care, and hospice workers.

CHICAGO (July 22, 2021): In what may be the largest survey of physician attitudes about firearms and how firearm-owning surgeons store guns in their homes, U.S. members of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) said they support the organization taking an active role in advocating for policies and programs designed to lower the risk of firearm-related injuries and deaths.

CHICAGO (July 14, 2021): Surgical care continues to be under threat in the proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for calendar year 2022 (CY2022) released yesterday by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The American College of Surgeons (ACS) strongly opposes the cuts to surgical care contained within the proposed CMS fee schedule and urges Congress to address systemic challenges to stop the annual reductions in patient care.

CHICAGO (July 13, 2021): The American College of Surgeons (ACS) Children’s Surgery Verification (CSV) program has announced the recent release of the second version of its Optimal Resources for Children’s Surgical Care manual. The updated standards are intended to ensure programs can achieve a high level of continuous quality improvement for children’s surgery patients from when they first enter a hospital setting until they are discharged. An informational session on the new standards will be presented tomorrow at the 2021 ACS Quality and Safety Conference – VIRTUAL.

CHICAGO (July 12, 2021): ACS QVP provides a proven, standardized method for establishing, measuring, and improving a hospital’s quality infrastructure across surgical departments.

CHICAGO (July 9, 2021): The American College of Surgeons (ACS) Surgical Skills Patient Education Program has launched a new kit for breast cancer patients that will help guide them from diagnosis to recovery. The ACS Surgical Skills Patient Education Program provides evidence-based knowledge, checklists, and skills training to support patients with preparation for surgery and optimal recovery. 

The 2021 ACS Quality and Safety Conference—July 12-16, 2021—will present online sessions each day beginning at 8:00 am (CDT). Apply in advance by 12 noon (CDT) Thursday, July 8, so you receive your login credentials in time and are ready to virtually attend sessions the first day of the conference.

CHICAGO (June 11, 2021; 10 a.m. CDT): One of the world’s most influential reproductive scientists, Patricia Kilroy Donahoe, MD, FACS, will receive the 2021 Jacobson Innovation Award of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) during a virtual event to be held in her honor this evening. Dr. Donahoe, a general and pediatric surgeon, is director of pediatric surgical research laboratories and chief emerita of pediatric surgical services at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Boston.

CHICAGO (June 1, 2021): Simulators have long been used for training surgeons and surgical teams, but traditional simulator platforms typically have a built-in limitation: they often simulate one or a limited number of conditions that require performance of isolated tasks, such as placing an intravenous catheter, instead of simulating and providing opportunities for feedback on the performance of multiple interventions that a trauma victim may require at the same time. To overcome this limitation, the Advanced Modular Manikin (AMM), an innovative simulation platform that allows integration of other simulation devices, was developed and field testing was conducted, with support from the Department of Defense (DoD).

CHICAGO (May 17, 2021): Traumatic injuries can occur any time and in many forms. May 20, 2021, marks the fourth annual National STOP THE BLEED^® Day, which falls during the broader observance of National STOP THE BLEED^® Month in May. 

CHICAGO (April 30, 2021): Evidence from the medical literature that contributes to adopting a new practice into clinical care is integral for surgical quality improvement. Part II of a comprehensive review of five key principles of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Quality Verification Program demonstrates the role of data surveillance and standardized processes and systems to identify problems and improve the quality and safety of surgical patient care.  The peer-reviewed article is published on the Journal of the American College of Surgeons (JACS) website in advance of print.

New funding opportunity for early-career faculty members will provide surgeons with grant support to make cancer-related basic and translational scientific research integral to their careers

CHICAGO (April 22, 2021): Uncontrolled bleeding continues to be one of the most common causes of preventable death from a traumatic injury. However, patient survival from such injuries has improved in Los Angeles County due to an increased use of tourniquets to help stop severe bleeding before a patient arrives at a hospital. Findings appear in a Journal of the American College of Surgeons study published online in advance of print.

CHICAGO (April 15, 2021, 9 a.m. CDT): New research reveals that 28 percent of patients who are readmitted to the hospital with complications after surgical removal of pancreatic, liver, or stomach cancer go to a different hospital for follow-up care. 

CHICAGO (March 26, 2021): Patients with stage II pancreatic cancer who receive chemotherapy followed by resection live nearly twice as long as patients who receive only chemotherapy.

CHICAGO (March 19, 2021): A new study reinforces the principle that “practice makes perfect” when it comes to complex GI cancer operations. Patients whose procedures for gastrointestinal malignancies were performed by a surgical team at a hospital ranked as one of America’s “best” by U.S. News & World Report were nearly two and half times more likely to survive the operation than those who had the same procedure done at an unranked hospital.

Chicago (March 18, 2021) – The American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer (ACS CoC) has joined a nationwide effort to encourage patients to resume appropriate cancer screening to prevent a more extensive illness or excess deaths.

CHICAGO (February 26, 2021): The American College of Surgeons Geriatric Surgery Verification Program (ACS GSV) has announced that Unity Hospital, Rochester, N.Y., has achieved Level 1—Comprehensive Excellence verification status, which recognizes its commitment to providing optimal care for its older adult surgical patients by meeting the GSV’s program standards.

[Geriatric Surgery Verification Quality Program]

CHICAGO (February 25, 2021): A prescribing guideline tailored to patients’ specific needs reduced the number of opioid pills prescribed after major surgery.

CHICAGO (February 12, 2021): An analysis of NIH database reveals surgeon scientists have become more diverse in their research efforts, while keeping a focus on basic science.

CHICAGO (February 9, 2021): Elderly patients (70 years and over) with locally advanced esophageal (E) and esophagogastric junction (EGJ) cancer (located in the stomach and esophagus) should be considered for optimal therapy that has the potential to cure. This therapy regimen includes initial chemoradiotherapy (NACR) and surgical resection, an operation that removes the cancerous part of the organ.

CHICAGO (February 8, 2021): The 2020 Jacobson Innovation Award of the American College of Surgeons was presented to James L. Cox, MD, FACS, at a virtual event held in his honor.

CHICAGO (January 29, 2021, 9 am CST): Trauma patients and patients who need emergency surgery have little to no opportunity to get acquainted with the surgeon and team that will perform their operation. However, a large study has found that effective and meaningful physician communication is a more important contributor to the overall satisfaction of trauma patients and those having emergency surgery than it is for patients admitted to the hospital for medical reasons or for elective procedures.

CHICAGO (January 28, 2021): The American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer (ACS CoC) has teamed up with the National Comprehensive Cancer Network^® (NCCN^®), the American Cancer Society (ACS) and other leading cancer organizations across the country to endorse the resumption of appropriate cancer screening and treatment to prevent excess deaths during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

CHICAGO (January 25, 2021): Older cancer patients are less likely to have optimal results following an operation if they live in an area affected by socioeconomic challenges.

CHICAGO (January 21, 2021): A multimodal pain regimen kept patient self-reported pain scores low while also reducing the amount of opioid drugs given to trauma patients.

CHICAGO (January 11, 2021): Non-Hispanic white patients get placed on liver transplant waitlists at disproportionately higher rates than non-Hispanic Black patients.