Summary
This journal abstract discusses the effectiveness of the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) accreditation program in improving compliance with standards and guidelines for obstetric and gynecologic ultrasound examinations. The study compared the scores of case studies submitted for accreditation with their scores during reaccreditation three years later. To account for time-related factors, the scores of recently accredited practices were used as a control group.
The results showed a significant improvement in both individual obstetric case studies and the average scores of all obstetric and gynecologic case studies during reaccreditation compared to the initial accreditation application three years earlier (all P < .001). The proportion of practices meeting AIUM accreditation requirements also significantly improved during reaccreditation, with higher success rates for both obstetric and gynecologic cases (P < .001).
Furthermore, reaccreditation scores were significantly higher than the scores of recent first-time accreditation applications for obstetric case studies and the average of obstetric and gynecologic case studies (P < .05). In conclusion, the study indicates that practices seeking and receiving ultrasound accreditation demonstrated improved case study scores and better compliance with established minimum standards and guidelines for obstetric and gynecologic ultrasound examinations during reevaluation three years after initial accreditation. This improvement is expected to enhance the quality of ultrasound practice.
