ACSA accreditation for Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust has been accredited under the prestigious Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA) Anaesthesia Clinical Services Accreditation (ACSA) demonstrating their commitment to patient safety and excellence of care.  

ACSA is the RCoA’s peer-reviewed scheme that promotes quality improvement and the highest standards of anaesthetic service. To receive accreditation, departments are expected to demonstrate high standards in areas such as patient experience, patient safety and clinical leadership. 

Dr Patricia Mills, ACSA lead reviewer, said: 

“I would like to offer my heartfelt congratulations to Imperial College Hospitals on achieving ACSA accreditation. The review team were struck by the commitment across sites to deliver excellence in all aspects of anaesthesia care. The complexity of this undertaking and the cohesiveness of the units in working together to deliver and evidence outstanding patient care is commendable. The engagement across departments was clear throughout the review visit and we were impressed with the subsequent thoroughness to meet standards and achieve accreditation. Imperial should be justifiably very proud of this award.”

Ms Mary Lynne Smith, ACSA lay reviewer, said: 

“Congratulations to Imperial Hospitals for their success in accreditation. It was a fascinating Trust to visit because of the variety and complexity of services. It was very busy but we were made very welcome. I hope our observations contributed to their development and implementation of their facilities and plans.”

Dr Claire Shannon, President of the Royal College of Anaesthetists, said:  

“I would like to offer my personal congratulations to the entire anaesthetic department on achieving ACSA accreditation. It is very impressive to see the commitment and approach of the whole department to sustaining their standards. They have demonstrated their ability and passion for providing the best possible care for their patients. 

“Patient safety is at the heart of what we do as a Medical Royal College. The quality improvement demonstrated during the accreditation process has helped the department manage the immense tasks presented to them by COVID-19 and the resumption of normal services.    

“It was impressive to see the innovative practices taking place at the hospital, and the excellent commitment from all staff during the process. As well as meeting the standards, the department demonstrated many areas of excellent advanced practice that have now been highlighted for sharing through the ACSA network.”