Moderate Sedation: Complying With Regulatory and Accreditation Requirements

Moderate sedation or analgesia, also known as “conscious sedation”, involves the use of a medication to provide relief of anxiety and pain. The patient does not lose consciousness, but does not perceive pain to the extent he or she may have otherwise. Each year, millions of procedures using moderate sedation are performed in ambulatory, ancillary, or acute care settings by non-anesthesia credentialed personnel for common procedures such as cardiac catheterization, endoscopy, and colonoscopy. Sedation of some level is often performed in critical care units to help patient’s better tolerate mechanical ventilation; and in the Emergency Department, moderate sedation is often used for endotracheal intubation, fracture reductionand lumbar puncture.