A settlement agreement between CMS and Wentworth-Douglass Hospital in Dover, N.H., has gone into effect after the hospital struggled to keep its Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments certification, according to a Fosters report.
The state Department of Health and Human Services first conducted a complaint survey of Wentworth-Douglass Hospital's laboratory in February 2011 and found its laboratory violated federal regulations. One of those regulations requires hospitals submit proficiency testing results to ensure the laboratory is producing accurate results for patients. The state's investigation concluded Wentworth-Douglass Hospital submitted proficiency samples produced by another lab. Officials argued "hospitals have had a different interpretation of these regulations" and the proficiency samples came out of a facility owned by the hospital, according to the report.
The state's investigation was forwarded onto CMS, which agreed with the state's findings. As a result, the hospital was expected to lose its CLIA certification May 2011 but filed an administrative appeal. Wentworth-Douglass Hospital and CMS ultimately reached a settlement agreement, under which the hospital must pay a fine, suspend its laboratory for a year and partner with an outside entity for laboratory services.
Under the settlement, the laboratory director and staff must undergo training and education on quality and safety.
The state Department of Health and Human Services first conducted a complaint survey of Wentworth-Douglass Hospital's laboratory in February 2011 and found its laboratory violated federal regulations. One of those regulations requires hospitals submit proficiency testing results to ensure the laboratory is producing accurate results for patients. The state's investigation concluded Wentworth-Douglass Hospital submitted proficiency samples produced by another lab. Officials argued "hospitals have had a different interpretation of these regulations" and the proficiency samples came out of a facility owned by the hospital, according to the report.
The state's investigation was forwarded onto CMS, which agreed with the state's findings. As a result, the hospital was expected to lose its CLIA certification May 2011 but filed an administrative appeal. Wentworth-Douglass Hospital and CMS ultimately reached a settlement agreement, under which the hospital must pay a fine, suspend its laboratory for a year and partner with an outside entity for laboratory services.
Under the settlement, the laboratory director and staff must undergo training and education on quality and safety.
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