NORTH BAY -- North Bay Regional Health Centre (NBRHC) is being recognized by the American College of Surgeons for its quality of surgery outcomes. 

The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) says the North Bay hospital is one of a dozen participating hospitals in Canada and 88 out of 722 from around the world to achieve "meritorious outcomes" for surgical patient care last year.

In a statement, the hospital says it has long been a leader provincially in driving surgical quality outcomes that are grounded by evidence, and has been a part of ACS NSQIP since 2015. 

The hospital has focused on surgical site infection reduction since 2017.

"We have achieved great success for our surgical patients at NBRHC, including decreased rates of peri-operative pneumonia, cardiac complications, and renal failure," said Dr. Amber Menezes, Surgeon Champion of NSQIP at NBRHC. "In addition, in the recent Auditor General’s Report, all Ontario NSQIP participating hospitals demonstrated an overall 27% reduction in post-surgical infections."

11 practice changing initiatives were incorporated as part of the project, making North Bay’s hospital one of the first hospitals both provincially and nationally to successfully implement a full bundle across all surgical services.

This year, the hospital has shifted its focus to reducing the use of opioids after surgery.

As a participant in ACS NSQIP, the hospital is required to track the outcomes of inpatient and outpatient surgical procedures, and collect data that assesses patient safety and can be used to direct improvement in the quality of surgical care.