The
Joint Commission accreditation involves evaluating a health care
organization's performance in areas that most affect patient health
and safety. These areas are defined in The Joint Commission standards.
By achieving accreditation, a health care organization makes a
commitment to follow The Joint Commission standards, which provide the
framework for safe, quality care.
Steps in the accreditation process
Step One:
A health care organization
applies for survey.
An on-site survey is
conducted by a team of surveyors who:
Conduct an opening
conference.
Talk to staff and patients
and observe care being provided.
Focus on certain areas of
care, for example, infection control or medication use.
Provide educational services
to improve compliance with the standards.
Provide feedback on areas for
improvement.
Step Two:
The Joint Commission's
Central Office issues:
An official accreditation
report
An accreditation decision
The possible accreditation
decisions are:
Accreditation
Provisional Accreditation
Conditional Accreditation
Preliminary Denial of
Accreditation
Denial of Accreditation
Preliminary Accreditation
The Joint Commission follows
up with organizations to ensure that the organization addressed
all requirements for improvement.
The Joint Commission posts a
Quality Report in Quality Check on The Joint Commission website.
An
organization's accreditation is for three years. The only exception is
for laboratories, which have a two-year accreditation period.
Accreditation is not automatically renewed. To become accredited
again, an organization must reapply, participate in a survey, and
demonstrate compliance with the standards.
