UC San Diego Health Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Unit Recognized Nationally

The ASGE Endoscopy Unit Recognition Program honors endoscopy programs that have demonstrated a commitment to patient safety and quality in endoscopy by meeting the program’s rigorous criteria, which includes following the ASGE guidelines on quality assurance, endoscope reprocessing, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention infection control guidelines and ensuring endoscopy staff competency.

“We continue to have the highest quality rates for our screening colonoscopies in terms of adenoma (benign tumor) detection rates, complete colon examinations and low complication rates,” said Savides, adding that the multidisciplinary team strives to provide the highest level of care for both routine general procedures, as well as the most complex interventional methods of endoscopy care.

“Our program also stands out because of the strong basic, clinical and translational research done by our UC San Diego faculty in gastroenterology and liver diseases,” said Savides, interim chair of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at University of California San Diego School of Medicine. “This has led to us being ranked number one in U.S. News & World Report’s ‘Best Global Universities for Gastroenterology and Hepatology’ for the past three years.”

In the 2022-2023 U.S. News & World Report ‘Best Hospital’ survey, Gastroenterology and GI Surgery at UC San Diego Health ranked No. 11.

To be recognized by ASGE, a unit, through a peer-reviewed application process, must attest to the continued competence of all staff relative to their roles, demonstrate the adoption of unit policies specific to ongoing assessment of performance relative to key quality indicators and affirm that the unit has an established infrastructure and personnel dedicated to infection control and prevention. The program is applicable to all settings in the United States, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands where endoscopy is practiced.

“We are proud to acknowledge these endoscopy units through our Endoscopy Unit Recognition Program,” said Lukejohn Day, MD, FASGE, chair, ASGE Quality Assurance in Endoscopy Committee. “By ensuring infection control principles are adhered to, continually assessing the competency of staff and monitoring patient satisfaction, ASGE-recognized units contribute to the public’s confidence in endoscopy, a life-saving technology.”