Healthcare Inspection Alleged Surgical Service Issues James A. Haley VA Hospital Tampa, Florida

This review was done in response to allegations related to perfusionist credentialing and a reorganization of the surgery department at the James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa, Florida. We did not substantiate that two perfusionists from a private-sector medical facility worked in the hospital’s operating room (OR) without appropriate credentials. We found that each perfusionist met the provisions of the contract. We did not substantiate that a surgery department reorganization favored certain surgeons or that it adversely affected patients. National and local performance measure data reflects that the hospital is performing comparably to similar VA medical facilities; therefore, we concluded that patient care was not being adversely affected by changes in the surgery department or OR scheduling. We also did not substantiate the allegation that reorganizing the surgical department to control the OR schedule was in violation of recommendations made from a previous report. We made no recommendations.