Tampa General Hospital is Florida’s First Hospital Verified for Emergency General Surgery by the American College of Surgeons

Published: May 16, 2025

TGH is 11th in the nation to achieve the prestigious verification for its emergency general surgery program based on a rigorous, evidence-based assessment.

Tampa, Fla. (May 16, 2025) –Tampa General Hospital (TGH) has announced its achievement of verification under the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Emergency General Surgery Verification Program (EGS-VP).

 

The program is a rigorous, evidence-based assessment that sets the national standard for excellence in emergency surgical care, encompassing not only the most common types of surgery performed, but also the most acute surgical emergencies in a hospital setting. Tampa General is the first health system in Florida — and 11th in the nation — to achieve this designation.

 

“As one of the first academic medical centers in the country to achieve this designation, TGH is setting the benchmark for what high-quality emergency general surgery care should look like,” said Melissa Golombek, DNP, MHCM, RN, NE-BC, CPN, executive vice president and chief operating officer at TGH. “Academic medical centers are expected to lead, in part, by setting the standards for providing transformative care. This recognition affirms TGH’s excellence not only in providing life-saving emergency surgery, but in advancing clinical quality, innovation and education at a national level.”

 

TGH’s board-certified emergency surgeons are available 24/7, ensuring that patients receive expert care exactly when needed. The EGS-VP helps hospital systems provide high-quality, around-the-clock care to promptly identify and manage common conditions that require emergency surgery, such as:

  • Appendicitis
  • Gallbladder disease
  • Severe abdominal infections/sepsis
  • Bowel obstructions
  • Perforated ulcers
  • Soft tissue infections
  • Hemorrhagic emergencies
  • Hernia repairs

The EGS-VP status indicates that the health system provides patients with medical care from an expert team of surgeons and specialists with specific expertise in treating emergency conditions and has advanced resources available regardless of when patients arrive at the emergency room. Verified EGS-VP hospitals have demonstrated the ability to operationalize emergency surgery with the highest industry standards of safety and quality, and the ability to adhere to the rigorous standards established by the ACS. 

“As an academic health system and the region’s only level 1 trauma center, Tampa General is dedicated to integrating research, clinical care, and medical education, and this national designation is a reflection of that mission in practice, where rigorous training, evidence-based protocols, and high-acuity care converge,” Michele Moran, MBA, MSN, RN, vice president for Emergency Services at TGH, remarked.

“Our EGS designation highlights our hospital’s commitment to improve the outcomes of a unique group of acutely ill surgical patients who are at high risk for morbidity and mortality,” said Dr. Thomas Herron, medical director of emergency general surgery at TGH and associate professor of surgery in the Division of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery with the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. “Having the ability to elevate the standard of the care of these patients allows not only for improved outcomes but also provides our trainees exposure to the rigors of maintaining a nationally verified model of emergency surgical care.”

The ACS EGS-VP is based on other nationally recognized ACS quality improvement programs and was developed with the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST). The ACS Quality Programs have measurably improved surgical quality outcomes and decreased complications, reduced costs and saved lives.

As an EGS-VP verified hospital, Tampa General continues its reputation as an ACS Surgical Quality Partner. Being a Surgical Quality Partner signifies a hospital’s dedication to consistently improving procedures and approaches to healthcare delivery, while maintaining a critical eye on every step of the process. The Surgical Quality Partner designation lets patients know Tampa General is dedicated to quality and relentless self-improvement and has been verified or accredited by the ACS. Patients can trust that the care they receive at Surgical Quality Partner hospitals adheres to the most rigorous standards in surgical quality.