Annually, numerous healthcare institutions apply for accreditation processes, always with the aim of achieving higher standards of quality in their services and team performance. Those that effectively manage to meet the high standards requested by accrediting bodies improve their services and institutional image with patients, industry professionals, and payers.
Who can apply?
In the healthcare field, practically all processes can be accredited. In fact, the merit lies in proving the quality of your processes and the pursuit of continuous improvement in their functioning. Therefore, the accreditation process is suitable for public or private institutions, clinics, hospitals, outpatient clinics, etc.
To define the criteria, a team of thirteen world-renowned experts (doctors, managers, public policy specialists, nurses, etc.) was responsible for defining the review criteria for the standards to gain JCI accreditation (Joint Commission International).
Accreditation Requirements (APR)
The part that deals with Accreditation Participation Requirements (APRs) defines the requirements for an institution to participate in the accreditation process. In this regard, health facilities must be compliant with what is requested to apply for evaluation.
In any case, APRs are not necessarily classified as a form of standardization. A unit receives a “conforming” or “non-conforming” in relation to APRs. Whenever the health unit is non-conforming in any particular point, the JCI requires it to seek to meet the requirements so as not to run the risk of being eliminated from the accreditation process.
There are 12 APRs in total:
Requirement: APR.1 The Unit must submit all documents in a timely manner to the JCI
Requirement: APR.2 The hospital provides all information about the stages of the process.
Requirement: APR.3 – The hospital needs to provide 15 days' advance notice of any changes in the plan.
Requirement: APR.4 – The hospital allows on-site evaluations of care, reports, and necessary information.
Requirement: APR.5 – The institution allows JCI to request and review any test results from external institutions.
Requirement: APR.6 – The unit allows JCI to have access to on-site analyses.
Requirement: APR.7 – The entity defines which parameters related to its operation are included in the Library measure specifications. Among these, we can highlight some:
- Patient Diagnosis
- Laboratory Safety
- Surgical Procedures
- Wrong medication or not necessarily correct
- Use of anesthetics and sedatives
- Infection Control and Related Reports
- Compliance with legislation
- Patient safety objectives
Requirement: April 8 Accurate representation regarding the application status and JCI programs and services
Requirement: April 9 Any member of hospital staff can provide comments on patient safety and quality of care to the JCI.
APR.10 Eventually, any translation or interpretation service for activities needs to be provided by licensed and qualified professionals.
Requirement: APR.11 – The institution notifies the public of the service channels so that any concerns regarding patient safety are communicated, recorded, and addressed.
APR.12 The hospital must provide a threat-free environment for the health of the patient, public, or staff.
Useful tools
Naturally, to control all necessary information, reports, and guidance, it is essential to have tools that allow everything to be monitored from one place. In this regard, efficient management of goals, indicators, and projects, in addition to quality improvement, can be supported by the use of appropriate software for hospital strategic management.
Contact us and receive more information on how we can help you achieve service excellence and obtain an accreditation certificate that will position you among the leaders in the Brazilian healthcare market. We are available through all our customer service channels.
