General Question for the Week of September 17, 2018

Question:

Does Medicare have standardization for staffing and credentialing of same in a moderate sedation procedure recovery room (i.e. 2 RNs with ACLS, 1 RN with ACLS and 1 staffer with BLS, etc)?

Answer:

Medicare does not set standards for nurse-to-patient ratios for recovery or nurse level of certification. We recommend that hospitals check their specific states’ administrative rules and regulations for the nurse-to-patient and nurse certification requirements. The American Society of PeriAnesthesia Nurses (http://www.aspan.org/) recommends for Phase II recovery nurse maintains ACLS, PLS or PEARS status.