Ohio Administrative Code|Rule 3701-84-37 | Personnel/staffing - open heart surgery service.

                                                
(A) The medical director of the adult open heart surgery service shall be board-certified in thoracic surgery. The medical director shall:
(1) Be responsible for oversight of care in the service;
(2) Be credentialed to provide adult open heart surgery services at the hospital where  the adult open heart surgery service is located; and
(3) Actively perform open heart procedures at the  open heart surgery service where they are the medical director.
(B) Each provider of an open heart surgery service shall have at least two thoracic surgeons on staff, credentialed to perform open heart procedures at the hospital and actively perform open heart procedures at the hospital. The medical director of the open heart surgery service may be counted as one of the two required thoracic surgeons.
(C) Each provider of an open heart surgery service shall have competent and qualified staff available, including but not limited to:
(1) Surgical assistants to assist the surgeon. A surgical assistant may be a resident, another physician, or a specially trained surgical assistant;
(2) Cardiac anesthesiologists with special training in the anesthetic and supportive requirements of open heart surgery;
(3) Nursing staff that shall include appropriate numbers of scrub nurses or technicians and a circulating  nurse based on the needs of the surgeons and the patient. A minimum of two staff, including a circulating nurse and one scrub nurse or technician shall be present for each procedure. Nursing staff shall be trained in cardiac surgical operating room procedures;
(4) A cardiac surgical intensive care unit shall be staffed at the appropriate nurse patient ratio commensurate with the acuity of the patients and the amount of time following surgery that such care is necessary. Cardiac surgical intensive care nurses shall be advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) certified and have specialized training to develop the theoretical knowledge and clinical skills required for the care of cardiac surgical patients; and
(5) A minimum of two perfusionists who are graduates of an accredited cardiovascular perfusion or perfusion technology program or have equivalent training and experience.
(D) In addition to the requirements of paragraph (C) of this rule, an open heart surgery service shall have appropriate staff available, including but not limited to:
(1) Pharmacists;
(2) Dietitians;
(3) Respiratory therapists;
(4) Physical therapists;
(5) Cardiac rehabilitation therapists; and
(6) Social workers.
(E) Staffing requirements of this rule may be met by individuals with equivalent or greater qualifications if the replacement's scope of practice encompasses the duties of the required staff.