The Standards and Guidelines for Accreditation of Educational Programs in Perfusion (Standards) require accredited perfusion programs to collect and assess outcomes data against the AC-PE thresholds set for each outcome.  Programs report outcomes in the AC-PE Annual Report.

1.  National Credentialing Exam Performance
70% of the program’s graduates will pass the Perfusion Basic Science Examination (PBSE) administered by the
American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion.
70% of the program’s graduates will pass the Clinical Applications in Perfusion Examination (CAPE) administered by the American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion.

Programs whose 3-year averaged outcomes do not meet the threshold must complete and submit a Standardized Progress Report,  in conjunction with the Annual Report.

2. Retention
50% of the students admitted will graduate from the program.

Programs whose 5-year averaged outcomes do not meet the threshold must complete and submit a Standardized Progress Report for Retention, in conjunction with the Annual Report.

3. Graduate Satisfaction
50% of the program’s graduating cohort will complete and return the Graduate Survey
Every question will have at least 80% of the responses rated 3 or greater on a 5-point Likert Scale, 1 being poor and 5 being excellent.

Programs must use at least all the questions in the AC-PE Graduate Survey, and may add more at its discretion.  Surveys should be distributed 6-12 months following graduation.

4. Employer Satisfaction
50% of Employers of a program’s graduating cohort will complete and return the Employer Survey
Every question will have at least 80% of the responses rated 3 or greater on a 5-point Likert Scale, 1 being poor and 5 being excellent.

Programs must use at least all the questions in the AC-PE Employer Survey, and may add more at its discretion.  Surveys should be distributed 6-12 months following employment.

5. Job/Positive Placement
80% of a program’s graduating cohort will be positively placed. Positive placement includes full- or part-time employment in perfusion or a related field, continuing education, and active military.

Programs whose 5-year averaged outcomes do not meet the threshold must complete and submit a Standardized Progress Report for Placement.

6. Summative Measures
The program will document student competency in the following areas:  cardiopulmonary bypass; mechanical circulatory support; autotransfusion/blood conservation/product management; and performance of laboratory analysis of blood gases, electrolytes, hematocrit/hemoglobin.