Membership

ACHQC (QC) Membership 

Abdominal Core Health Quality Collaborative (“ACHQC Foundation”), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization formerly known as Americas Hernia Society Quality Collaborative Foundation (AHSQC), owns and operates a quality collaborative initiative under the name Abdominal Core Health Quality Collaborative, also known as the QC (the “QC” or “Collaborative).  The Collaborative collects and aggregates health information, including, but not limited to, long-term follow-up data and patient reported outcomes, and publishes and provides de-identified and limited data sets of health information related to abdominal core and hernia surgical repairs to fulfill its mission to improve outcomes and value in abdominal core and hernia patient care. The health information that is collected is maintained in a secure data base generally referred to as the QC Registry. The QC Registry operates in compliance with HIPAA and other applicable regulations. 

As a nonprofit organization, ACHQC Foundation does not have members with rights to participate in or vote on corporate actions, although all those who ACHQC Foundation recognizes as members of the QC have the opportunity to participate in select  Collaborative activities and, for Institutional and Surgeon Members, to use without charge the data collected by the Collaborative for healthcare purposes, such as quality assessment and quality improvement, and for research.

Institutional and Surgeon Members

Participants who contribute data to the QC include both: (i) institutions and surgical practices which are engaged through their employees, members, credentialed staff, affiliated physician groups, or other affiliates in the practice of surgical medicine (“Institutional Members”), and (ii) those institutions’ and surgical practices’ surgeons who are directly engaged in surgical practice which includes abdominal core and hernia surgical repairs (“Surgeon Members”).  These Members have written agreements that define their relationship with ACHQC Foundation, although certain benefits of membership are determined by the level of their participation.   

Active Status: Institutional Members and Surgeon Members are considered to be in active status if they have input data on surgical cases into the QC Registry within the last 6 months. Any such Members failing to input any surgical cases over a 6 month period are considered inactive and, after notice and a period of time as determined by ACHQC Foundation’s policies, if no case data are thereafter input into the QC Registry, such inactive Members’ participation in the QC is subject to termination by ACHQC Foundation.   

Foundation Partner Members  

The QC relies on the financial support of its Foundation Partners.  Foundation Partners’ sponsorship of the QC’s affords them the right to annual or semi-annual standardized reports of data collected by the Collaborative and, depending on their level of support, to participate in the Collaborative’s partnership meetings which bring together private and public stakeholders focused on the surgical treatment of abdominal core and hernia disease.  Foundation Partner Members have written agreements that define their relationship with ACHQC Foundation. 

Public Health Agency Members

Various public health agencies collaborate with the QC on an informal basis. These agencies include the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health and the National Evaluation System for Health Technology Coordinating Center (NESTcc). 

Resident and Fellow Members

Medical residents and fellows involved in a surgical residency or fellowship ordinarily are not able to participate in the QC as Surgeon Members. Nevertheless, many such residents and fellows have developed or are developing an interest in the surgical treatment of abdominal core and hernia diseases. These residents and fellows are encouraged to participate in the Collaborative’s meetings, summits, and other activities that are made available to its Surgeon Members.  These residents and fellows may participate in such Surgeon Member activities and be recognized as a member of the QC upon the recommendation of a Surgeon Member or upon a written request made to the ACHQC Foundation’s Medical Director (mrosen@achqc.org). Written requests should include a CV and a statement of interest in the QC. Physicians who are recognized as a Resident or Fellow Member will receive notices and invitations to participate in Surgeon Member activities for 3 years following their recognition as a Member of the QC.