Florida Office Surgery Centers will be Inspected Differently

Beginning this week, office surgery centers will be inspected by state investigators rather than independent auditors — a policy change by the Florida Department of Health that healthcare safety advocates say could harm patients, especially clients of discount cosmetic surgery clinics associated with repeated injuries and deaths.
The change will affect most of Florida’s estimated 535 licensed and active office surgery centers that perform a range of procedures every day, from removing warts and moles using little or no sedation to performing liposuction and fat transfers requiring general anesthesia.
State officials say they decided to cancel the contracts after “evaluating the relationship” with the independent auditors who have conducted the inspections since 2000.
The office surgery centers now will be inspected instead by the state’s Investigative Services Unit, which investigates complaints against doctors and hospitals, according to Brad Dalton, a health department spokesman. He would not say whether the move was a cost-cutting measure.
“The department has full confidence in our Investigative Services Unit to conduct these inspections,” Dalton said.
Read more at Miami Herald >>