Blog
3 Things to Know as You Prepare for the Joint Commission Survey
The time has come. It’s time to prepare for the Joint Commission on Accreditation, Health Care, and Certification (JCAHO) survey. JCAHO’s accreditations and certifications are “recognized nationwide as a symbol of quality that reflects an organization’s commitment to meeting certain performance standards,” and almost 21,000 healthcare organizations and programs in the US have received them. But when it comes to preparing for the Joint Commission survey, what exactly should you be focusing on?
Author: Marcell Haywood
The time has come. It’s time to prepare for the Joint Commission on Accreditation, Health Care, and Certification (JCAHO) survey. JCAHO’s accreditations and certifications are “recognized nationwide as a symbol of quality that reflects an organization’s commitment to meeting certain performance standards,” and almost 21,000 healthcare organizations and programs in the US have received them.
But when it comes to preparing for the Joint Commission survey, what exactly should you be focusing on? If you’re a healthcare organization looking to achieve the gold seal of JCAHO accreditation, here are three things that can help you prepare.
1. Know if you’ll be notified or if the survey will be unannounced.
According to JCAHO’s website, the Commission usually conducts unannounced surveys “unless it is not feasible or logical to do so.” While “all hospital and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services deeming or recognition surveys are unannounced,” initial surveys, focused standards assessment options 2 and 3 surveys, and the first survey conducted under the Early Survey Policy are always announced. Furthermore, ambulatory care, behavioral health, home care, laboratory, and nursing care center facilities receive a seven-day notice.
2. Know the 2017 National Patient Safety Goals.
JCAHO’s National Patient Safety Goals (NPSGs) are available for ambulatory health care, behavioral health care, critical access hospitals, home care, hospitals, laboratories, nursing care centers, and office-based surgery.
Many of the safety goals for each type of facility overlap, and include:
- Identifying patients and/or residents correctly
- Using medicines safely
- Preventing infection
- Preventing mistakes in surgery
- Identifying individuals are served correctly
- Identifying individuals are served safety risks
- Improving staff communication
- Using alarms safely
- Preventing patients and/or residents from falling
- Identifying patient safety risks
- Preventing bed sores