November 08, 2023
The emergency general surgery program at The University of Kansas Health System in Kansas City, Kansas, has been named one of the first 5 verified programs in the nation under the new American College of Surgeons Emergency General Surgery Verification Program (EGS-VP), launched in September 2022.
The EGS-VP is a surgical quality evaluation program that helps hospitals and health systems establish and maintain the highest standards in emergency general surgery – one of the most frequent types of surgery a hospital handles.
We are so proud to be among the first EGS verified programs in the country, we really are leading the nation in caring, healing, teaching and discovering by helping to establish the EGS-VP program and standards." Mary Perry, MSN, RN, CCRN
Clinical program coordinator for emergency general surgery
“This EGS-VP designation sets us apart as national leaders in superior clinical care,” says Jennifer Hartwell, MD, FACS, section chief of emergency general surgery. “We are proud to serve Kansas City and the surrounding communities with timely, highly skilled, compassionate care for all emergency surgical needs.”
The health system’s emergency general surgery program treats patients who have urgent and emergent conditions such as appendicitis, gallbladder issues, small bowel obstructions and intestinal rupture. These are conditions people can’t go home with to wait for treatment – they need to have surgery right away.
Health system acute care surgeons are double board-certified in general surgery and critical care, which means they are uniquely poised to provide for patients and their most critical needs, even when they are in intensive care.
The American College of Surgeons (ACS) selected the health system as a pilot site for the verification. They assessed performance improvement initiatives and how staff members treat emergency general surgery patients. The information the ACS found at our site helped determine the standards for the national program.
“We are so proud to be among the first EGS verified programs in the country,” says Mary Perry, MSN, RN, CCRN, clinical program coordinator for emergency general surgery. “We really are leading the nation in caring, healing, teaching and discovering by helping to establish the EGS-VP program and standards. We are setting the example for exceptional EGS patient care, and I am so excited to see this program grow in our organization, region and nation.”