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What is JCI Accreditation?

The Joint Commission, formerly known as the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, and still known more commonly by the acronym, JCAHO, is an independent, not-for-profit organization that evaluates and accredits more than 15,000 healthcare organizations in the United States. It was founded in 1951. JCAHO's Joint Commission International (JCI) was founded in the late 1990s to survey hospitals outside of the United States. JCI, which is also not-for- profit, currently accredits facilities in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and South America. A count of JCI-accredited hospitals worldwide (as listed on the JCI website in June 2012) shows 375 hospitals in 47 countries. As one would assume, the standards of international assessment are not the same as standards for facilities within the United States. A 2007 interview with Karen Timmons, President and CEO of Joint Commission International, posted on MedTripInfo.com, quoted Timmons as saying, "We determined that the existing Joint Commission standards should not be used, and developed a set of international standards that could be applied to various health care systems and that would be sensitive to unique cultural issues. (W)e feel that our standards are comparable, but different." Information about the accreditation process, and international standards for different types of facilities are available on the JCI website. The JCI says the average fee for a hospital full survey in 2010 was US$46,000. Other groups that fulfill a similar role in international accreditation are: Accreditation Canada (formerly the Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation (CCHSA)), which also has an Accreditation Canada International service The QHA Trent Accreditation (United Kingdom) The Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS)

The Joint Commission International (JCI) provides accreditation for hospitals, ambulatory care facilities, clinical laboratories, home care, long term care, medical transport organisations, and primary care services, as well as certification for disease or condition specific care. JCI standards were developed by international health care experts and set uniform, achievable expectations. JCI is accredited by the International Society for Quality in Healthcare (ISQua) and is a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre. JCI is one of the largest international healthcare evaluators in the world. With its primary focus on improving the safety of patient care through the provision of accreditation and certification services, JCI accredits over 400 public and private health care organisations in 40 countries worldwide. In Ireland it accredits some of the top healthcare providers including: Aut Even Hospital Barrington's Hospital Limited Beacon Dermatology Dublin, Ireland UPMC Beacon Hospital Beacon Hospital Cancer Centre Beacon Renal Blackrock Clinic Bon Secours Hospital, Cork Bon Secours Hospital, Dublin Bon Secours Hospital, Galway Bon Secours Hospital, Tralee Euromedic Ireland Galway Clinic

Hermitage Medical Clinic Mater Private Hospital Merlin Park Imaging Centre Mount Carmel Hospital Sports Surgery Clinic

Health Care Informed (HCI) has now formed a strategic alliance with the Joint Commission International (JCI) to assist in increasing support and responsiveness to their clients in Ireland. Together JCI and HCI can demonstrate a committed focus to the ongoing development of quality and patient safety in Ireland. HCI's support services are fully comprehensive, from the development of quality and safety management systems, to the ongoing maintenance and support of established systems.

What are the benefits of ISO International Standards?

ISO International Standards ensure that products and services are safe, reliable and of good quality. For business, they are strategic tools that reduce costs by minimizing waste and errors and increasing productivity. They help companies to access new markets, level the playing field for developing countries and facilitate free and fair global trade. Certification the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. Registration certification is very often referred to as registration in North America. Accreditation the formal recognition by an independent body, generally known as an accreditation body, that a certification body is capable of carrying out certification. Accreditation is not obligatory but it adds another level of confidence, as accredited means the certification body has been independently checked to make sure it operates according to international standards.

Certification...
to ISO management system standards
Organizations and companies often want to get certified to ISOs management system standards (for example ISO 9001 or ISO 14001) although certification is not a requirement. The best reason for wanting to implement these standards is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of company operations. A company may decide to seek certification for many reasons, as certification may:

be a contractual or regulatory requirement

be necessary to meet customer preferences fall within the context of a risk management programme, and help motivate staff by setting a clear goal for the development of its management system.

ISO does not perform certification

ISO develops International Standards, including management system standards such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 31000. However, it is not involved in the certification to any of the standards it develops. Certification is performed by external certification bodies, which are largely private. Therefore a company or organization cannot be certified by ISO.

NABH is an acronym for National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers is a constituent board of Quality Council of India, set up to establish and operate accreditation programme for healthcare organizations. NABH was established in year 2006. Organisations like the Quality Council of India (QCI) and its National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare providers NABH have designed an exhaustive healthcare standard for hospitals and healthcare providers. This standard consists of stringent 600 plus objective elements for the hospital to achieve in order to get the NABH accreditation. These standards are divided between patient centered standards and organization centred standards. To comply with these standard elements, the hospital will need to have a process-driven approach in all aspects of hospital activities from registration, admission, pre-surgery, perisurgery and post-surgery protocols, discharge from the hospital to follow-up with the hospital after discharge.Not only the clinical aspects but the governance aspects are to process driven based on clear and transparent policies and protocols.In a nutshell NABH aims at streamlining the entire operations of a hospital. NABH is equivalent to JCI and other International standards including HAS: Haute Authorite de Sante, Australian Council on Healthcare Standards, the Japan Council for Quality in Health Care, and the National Committee for Quality Assurance in the United States. Its standards have been accredited by ISQUA the apex body accrediting the accreditators hence making NABH accreditation at par with the worlds most leading hospital accreditations. Medication Errors can be avoided at the point of care within the hospitals; prescription points like OPs and drug dispensesing points like pharmacies and nursing stations by the use of reliable and updated drug information. e.g. : MedCLIK

accreditation Canada is a not-for-profit, independent organization accredited by the


International Society for Quality in Health Care (ISQua). We provide national and international health care organizations with an external peer review process to assess and improve the services they provide to their patients and clients based on standards of excellence. Accreditation Canada's programs and guidance have helped organizations promote quality health care for over 50 years.

NAAC- The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) is an organization that assesses and accredits institutions of higher education in India. It is an autonomous body funded by University Grants Commission of Government of India headquartered in Bangalore.

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Under the new methodology introduced by NAAC w.e.f. 1st April, 2007, the higher education institutions are assessed and accredited by a two-step approach. In the first step, the institution is required to seek Institutional Eligibility for Quality Assessment (IEQA) and the second step is the assessment and accreditation of the institute under the grades A, B, C for accredited institutions; and D for those which are not accredited. NAAC has identified seven criteria- i. Curricular aspects, ii. Teaching-learning and evaluation, iii. Research, Consultancy and extension, iv. Infrastructure and learning resources, v. Student support and progression, vi. Governance and leadership and vii. Innovative practices as the basis for its assessment procedure.[3] NAAC follows the process of Grade accreditation only and does not undertake threshold accreditation, i.e the Grade is only a relative value assigned to a university and does not denote an absolute attribute of quality.[4]

Status of Accredited Universities


At present in India, accreditation is voluntary for Higher Education Institutions.Out of 612 Universities in the country, only 172 of them have been accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC). Out of the Universities accredited, 67 have been placed in Grade A, 99 Universities in Grade B and only 6 in Grade C, based on scores awarded during the process of accreditation.[4] A bill - National Accreditation Regulatory Authority for Higher Educational Institutions Bill, 2010[5] has been introduced in Parliament of India to make it mandatory for every higher educational institution in the country (other than institutions engaged in agricultural education) to be accredited by an independent accreditation agency.

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