The accreditation process involves submitting documents and other information requested by the Joint Commission (JC) and an on-site survey and interviews by surveyors (The Joint Commission, 2014). The purpose is to assess an organization’s level of adherence with applicable standards published by the JC. Standards typically represent ideal performance and pertain to the safety and quality of care (Greenfield et al., 2012). Standards positively impact patient health outcomes as they are founded on expert opinion and input from stakeholders including government agencies, consumers, advisory organizations, employers, and professional organizations. The standards are revised periodically based on feedback. Moreover, the standards meet and in many instances even surpass current laws and regulations. For this reason, successful accreditation implies that an organization’s performance has met or surpassed the desired level. Following accreditation, surveyors also conduct unannounced surveys to ensure continued compliance. The accreditation process, therefore, drives the adoption and maintenance of standards.
The JC has a standard for the administration of blood transfusions and intravenous medications. The criterion is for staff members performing these duties to be specially trained if they are not physicians. The standard directly affects patient safety because the lack of training increases the likelihood of errors that can potentially lead to fatal outcomes. The measure indicative of compliance is the documentation of such training added to the educational file of the staff. In so doing, the JC ensures that hospitals provide staff training and continuing education before allowing them to administer IV drugs and transfuse blood. My organization prefers that nurses in this role obtain certification reflecting the accomplishment of standardized training and competency testing. Documentation as evidence of training completion is the responsibility of the human resources department.
References
Greenfield, D., Pawsey, M., Hinchcliff, R., Moldovan, M., & Braithwaite, J. (2012). The standard of healthcare accreditation standards: A review of empirical research underpinning their development and impact. BMC Health Services Research, 12(329), 1-14. Retrieved from http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1472- 6963-12-329.pdf
The Joint Commission (2014). Accreditation process overview. Retrieved from http://www.jointcommission.org/assets/1/18/Accreditation_Process_Overview_factsh eet.pdf
