Abstract
Over the last half century, noninvasive vascular testing has evolved from a research laboratory curiosity to a well-established clinical component in the management of patients with vascular disease. As with any new field, the search for high-quality work is a critical challenge. An important early step was developing appropriate education for the physicians and the technical staff who would ultimately be examining patients. But providing educational opportunities was only the first step in ensuring a quality operation. It was necessary to define prerequisite knowledge and experience, together with a determination of entry-level knowledge. This step was achieved in 1983 by establishing a certifying examination for vascular technologists. The second quality initiative was to define benchmarks for establishing and running of an examining facility. Relevant issues included quality of equipment, ongoing supervision, examination protocols, standardized diagnostic criteria, reporting standards, and validation studies. In 1991, a formal laboratory accreditation was established to provide a structured approach to this side of improved quality. Over the years, the combination of individual certification and laboratory accreditation has led in the effort to improve the quality of noninvasive testing.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Appendix
Appendix
Education
www.oit.edu/programs/klamath-falls/medical-imaging-technology/vascular-technology/overview (Oregon Institute of Technology)
www.CAAHEP.org (education info)
Credentialing
Accreditation
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer-Verlag London
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Baker, J.D., Jones, A.M. (2013). Improving Quality in Noninvasive Testing by Certification and Accreditation. In: AbuRahma, A., Bandyk, D. (eds) Noninvasive Vascular Diagnosis. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-4005-4_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-4005-4_1
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-4471-4004-7
Online ISBN: 978-1-4471-4005-4
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)