Guidelines for Office-Based Anesthesia

Interested in starting your own practice of ambulatory anesthesia (office based anesthesia), below are a few of the issues that the ASA suggested to follow in their guideline:

Administration and Facility

1. Quality of Care

• Should have a Medical Director
• Valid licenses/certificates for each individual to perform their duties
• All OR personnel should have appropriate education, training and experience
• Anesthesiologist should ensure they are up to date with quality improvement and risk management

2.  Facility and Safety

• Facilities should  comply with all federal, state & local laws, codes & regulations pertaining to the building construction.
• Policies and procedures should comply with laws and regulations

Clinical Care

1. Patient and Procedure Selection

• Patient's procedure should allow them to recover and be discharged from the facility
• Those with pre-existing medical conditions with risk of complications should be referred to appropriate facility

2. Perioperative Care

• Anesthesiologist should be present during and until immediately after the patient is discharged from anesthesia care
• Discharge is the physicians responsibility 

3. Monitoring and Equipment

• All equipment should be maintained, tested, and inspected
• Back-up power should be sufficient

4. Emergencies and Transfers

• The facility should have medications, equipment and written protocol for treating hypothermia
• Written protocols for internal and external disasters

To download the full article with additional guidelines, please click the following link: Guidelines for Office-Based Anesthesia

For additional resources on assisting your practice, please click here: Medical Reimbursement Resources Page