Guidelines for Privileging and Credentialing Physicians for Sacrocolpopexy for Pelvic Organ Prolapse

The adoption of new technology or procedures into a clinician's surgical armamentarium is driven by multiple factors. Patient safety and anticipated long-term improvement in outcomes should be the primary objective that guides a surgeon's decision to deliver care involving new procedures. Surgically complex procedures require a balance of knowledge, surgical skill, and experience as well as an appropriate ongoing surgical volume, an adequately trained and equipped surgical team, and the ability to monitor outcomes and adverse events. Sacrocolpopexy is a complex procedure used to treat apical vaginal prolapse. Clinical outcome studies support its effectiveness in managing apical prolapse. Serious adverse events have been noted in several of these studies (hemorrhage, sacral infection, mesh erosion, bowel obstruction, and injury to the urinary tract).1,2 This document provides guidelines for the privileging and credentialing of physicians planning to implement or continue the use of sacrocolpopexy in clinical practice. Copyright © 2013 by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.