26:2H-5.1e Quarterly report from ambulatory care facility; required information.

3. a. An ambulatory care facility licensed to provide surgical services pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.) shall be required to report quarterly to the Department of Health, in a form and manner prescribed by the commissioner:

(1) process quality indicators of infection control as selected by the commissioner in consultation with the Quality Improvement Advisory Committee within the department; and

(2) beginning 30 days after the adoption of regulations pursuant to this act, data on infection rates for the major site categories that define facility-associated infection locations, multiple infections, and device-related and non-device related infections, as selected by the commissioner in consultation with the Quality Improvement Advisory Committee within the department.

b. The information reported pursuant to this section shall be transmitted in such a manner as to not include identifying information about patients.

c. The commissioner shall promptly advise an ambulatory care facility in the event that the commissioner determines, based on information reported by the facility, that a change in facility practices or policy is necessary to improve performance in the prevention of facility-associated infection and quality of care provided at the facility.

d. The commissioner shall make available to members of the public, on the official Internet website of the department, the information reported pursuant to this section, in such a format as the commissioner deems appropriate to enable comparison among ambulatory care facilities with respect to the information.

e. In order to effectuate the purposes of this section, the commissioner, in consultation with the Quality Improvement Advisory Committee in the department, shall, by regulation: establish standard methods for identifying and reporting facility-associated infections; identify the major site categories for which infections shall be reported, taking into account the categories most likely to improve the delivery and outcome of health care in the State; and specify the methodology for presenting the data to the public, including procedures to adjust for differences in case mix and severity of infections among facilities.

L.2009, c.263, s.3; amended 2012, c.17, s.162.