El Paso (Texas) Children's Hospital has begun providing some sterilization services to the University Medical Center of El Paso after the UMC's sterile processing unit failed to meet Joint Commission standards, according to the El Paso Times.
UMC of El Paso recently canceled elective and non-emergency surgeries after the Joint Commission gave the hospital a preliminary denial of accreditation.
According to the report, El Paso Children's responded by offering to provide services to its neighbor — an offer UMC accepted beginning Sunday — despite a multimillion-dollar dispute that exists between the two hospitals regarding rent and other services.
"El Paso Children's Hospital was evaluated and passed accreditation by the Joint Commission in March of 2015 for compliance with standards of care specific to the needs of patients, including infection prevention and control, leadership and medication management," according to a statement issued by El Paso Children's Hospital and cited by the report.
Following the preliminary denial, UMC was given 23 days to fix the issues with the processes, certifications and documentation in its sterile processing department. UMC has announced, however, that it will seek to shorten that time period and ask for the approval of the Joint Commission by July 24.
In the interim, UMC will still handle emergency surgery cases, seeing as it is the only Level I trauma center in a 250-mile radius of El Paso, according to the hospital.