...Accreditation in Distance Education Katrina Dixon Spring 2012 Choosing the appropriate school for Higher Education is a major decision that all students must face. The world of accreditation is slowly changing, generally in the direction of dealing more with outcomes: how schools teach or train their students and how well the students perform (Bear, Nixon 2006, 37) Making sure that the school has the courses they desire, flexibility and if it is affordable to them are all issues that must be looked at but the most important aspect of the decision is finding out about the school’s accreditation. Accreditation is a validation process by which institutions of higher education are evaluated against established standards to ensure a high level of educational quality. Knowing the accreditation status of the school that you have chosen for your Higher Education is very important because the school’s accreditation can determine how usable a degree is once it is obtained. This paper will discuss accreditation in depth and what it means to distance education. Researching an institution accreditation can be tedious but it is necessary to have this knowledge. Asking college officials and current students is one way to gather information but a prospective student should also look for other signs that the institution is credible. One of the best indicators for quality of an institution is recognition from nationally recognized professional organizations. ...
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...Structure of Accreditation June 8, 2016 According to the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE), “Accreditation is a process used by higher education to evaluate colleges, universities, and educational programs for quality and to assess their efforts toward continuous quality improvement.” The accreditation is performed by private, not-for-profit organizations whose sole purpose is to conduct external quality reviews. There are regional accrediting organizations in the United States that manage six different regions of the country. “These organizations review degree-granting nonprofit and for-profit institutions within their regions, both two-year and four-year schools” (www.wiche.edu), and accredit colleges and universities that operate in both traditional and non-traditional settings. The Top 10 online college’s website states that these organizations are charged with an important responsibility, which is “Accreditation through the Higher Learning Commission helps standardize the education a student receives at any college that has successfully undergone the accreditation process”. Without this process, many schools and colleges would not offer equal opportunity and would typically be run for the purposes of making money rather than educating students. The purpose of regional accreditation is to ensure that an institution’s academic program meets acceptable levels of quality (CHEA). Schools must be accredited by a federally recognized accrediting agency...
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...Accreditation Audit AFT Task 1 Roland Helmuth Western Governors University Accreditation Audit AFT Task 1 Medication Management A. Compliance Status I will be reviewing three specific areas dealing with medication management. They are the following with the correlating Joint Commission Standard following each one: 1. The hospital plans its medication management process, (MM.01.01.01). 2. Label all medications, medication containers, or other solutions on and off the sterile field, (NPSG.03.04.01). 3. Reduce the likelihood of patient harm associated with the use of anticoagulation therapy, (NPSG.03.05.01). In review of standard MM.01.01.01, I see that Nightingale Community Hospital (NCH) has a policy that speaks directly to this standard. The elements of performance are met by the policy that is in place and includes further information to make this important standard compliant with Joint Commission standards. In review of standard NPSG.03.04.01, I do not find the NCH has a policy that addresses this. Seeing that NCH has surgical and sterile procedures performed at its facility this standard needs to have a policy in place. The basis of this is patient safety related to the five rights of medication administration; Right patient, Right medication, Right dose, Right route and Right time. Even in a controlled environment of a surgical suite, this is vital to any procedure performed. In review of...
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...Melissa L. Nelcha AFT2- Task 1 Western Governors University October 25,2013 The Joint Commission has identified four distinct areas of concern within our accreditation audit. They are Communication, Information Management, Infection Control and Medication Management. While each of these is important, and vital in running Nightingale, the focus of this Summary will be on Medication Management. The reasons are as follows: * Errors can lead to increased hospital stays, possible lawsuits, and increased mortality rates, all of which affects our reputation within the community and elsewhere. * Due to the severity of the possible outcomes from medication errors, our company could end up having to pay out large sums of money to deal with repercussions of these errors in legal fees, etc. * Increasing numbers of Adverse Events can lead to a moratorium set on our facility, wherein we would not be allowed to accept any new patients, thereby losing untold amounts of money. A step this drastic can take years to fully recover from. * Having to legally inform the public of each and every adverse event coming from a Medication error could also cost us untold amounts of revenue. The Joint Commission Standard focused on in this summary will be Medication Management. There are three areas covered within the Medication Management Criteria. * Planning Medication Management processes * Labeling of Medications and devices used to administer them * Reducing patient...
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...Executive Summary - Infection Control and Prevention Current Compliance Status for Joint Commission Accreditation Nightingale Community Hospital is committed to providing healthcare excellence, a healing environment and to be the choice for patient care. In order to continue to provide quality healthcare services in accordance with our values of safety, community, teamwork, and accountability Joint Commission Accreditation provides guidelines and standards for the Priority Focus Areas (PFA) for the welfare and quality of patient care. Infection control and prevention extends beyond treating the patient. It encompasses all who work and visit the facility including medical staff, administrative staff, volunteers, vendors, and visitors. Implementing activities and programs to control, treat, prevent and identify sources of infection will help ensure the overall satisfaction and quality of patient care. Based on previous fiscal year data Joint Commission has identified Infection Control as one of the PFAs. In order to be in compliance with the standards and guidelines of Joint Commission Accreditation five areas of Infection Control and Prevention have been identified: 1. The hospital implements its infection prevention and control activities, including surveillance, to minimize, reduce, or eliminate the risk of infection. 2. Comply with either the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) hand hygiene guidelines or the current World Health Organization...
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...Accreditation Options There are a variety of accreditation options that a medical management committee could choose from when considering their options for their healthcare organization to participate in. One consideration is whether to participate with a regionally or nationally accredited organization. Committee looking at their options are not only concerned about the healthcare organization. The patients they serve are also very important, as their expectations of the accreditations that are held by the organization they receive care in must be considered. The cost of the accreditation organization’s services, and what each bring to the table in terms of their processes and communication they deliver is vital. As of last year there are four accreditation options that are nationally recognized organizations that healthcare organizations can choose from if they are concerned with proving and demonstrating their compliance with the Medicare conditions of participation, they are: the Center for Improvement in Healthcare Quality, the Joint Commission, the Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program, and Det Norske Veritas Healthcare Inc.,’s program (Thompson, 2013). Healthcare organizations must consider their needs when determining which nationally accredited organizations to enter into agreements with. Thompson (2013) states, “The Joint Commission dominates the field. In 2010–11, the report states, 90% of hospitals with so-called deemed status obtained it from the Joint Commission...
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...Executive Summary Accreditation Audit - Communication Nightingale Community Hospital A. Compliance Status Nightingale Community Hospital (NCH) has a vital role as a not-for-profit community hospital providing health care and services in various areas such as critical care, general medical and surgical services, oncology etc. This executive summary provides overview in terms of NCH`s compliance of priority focus area on communication: * The current status of the NCH`s communication compliance with the communication requirements of the Joint Commission (JC) on Accreditation of Healthcare Organization. * Corrective action plan for a compliance with the JC’s standards for the communication focus area. * Justification of an importance for the communication standards for NCH. Current Status NCH Communication standards compliance to 2013 Joint Commission Hospital Standards for Communication NCH current standards and protocols in place | Joint Commission(JC) Standard Number | Joint Commission Standards, retrieved from Joint Commissions on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (2013) | NCH Preprocedure Hand-Off form | UP.01.01.01 | Conduct a preprocedure verification process. | Overall finding: Based on the provided material, NCH preprocedure hand-off form, there appears to be a preprocedure verification process in place within the hospital. This form, however, does not have a clear division of information areas that are collected and the data provided...
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...Corrections Accreditation and Privatization Paper Serena Valenzuela CJS/230 December 16, 2012 Josephine Kerr Corrections Accreditation and Privatization Paper According to Foster (2006) accreditations allow a company to comply with national values. Correctional officers are certified to comply with accreditation. Leaders can always improve professionalization and accreditation. Privatization is a private owned prison usually by individuals or stock holders. State and federal prisons are slighted affected by privatization and hold contracts with state and federal prisons. “What professionalism is to individuals working in the field, accreditation is to organizations—a movement toward higher standards (Foster, pg 180,2006).” According to Foster (2006) corrections accreditation started in 1978. According to Foster (2006) being a part of accreditation is an ongoing process of evaluations for operations against the national standards, solve deficiencies, and improvement on programs and services. According to Foster (2006) accreditation is to measure a company’s compliance with countrywide accepted values. According to Foster (2006) the ACA provides a process that starts with an application leading to a complete audit and approval or denial. The accreditation is good for three years then another audit will be completed again to make sure the company is staying in compliance with the accreditation. According to Foster (2006) this system is a verification process to comply...
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...strive to provide cutting edge technology with exceptional care. Our vision is to be the hospital of choice for patients, employees, physicians, volunteers and the community. Our mission is to create a healing environment, with a passionate commitment to healthcare excellence. Through our vision and mission, Nightingale Hospital strives to meet and exceed all expectations during our next Joint Commission visit. Before we address the aspects of our upcoming visit from Joint Commission, we must address the foundation of what Joint Commission is. One of the definitions of Joint Commission is, “Joint Commission Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) is an organization that develops and maintains standards to promote compliance in regards to acceptable levels of care that should be given to patients” (About the Joint Commission). Accreditation from JCAHO provides Nightingale Community Hospital with the gold seal of approval signifying exceptional care. Currently Nightingale Hospital has the JCAHO stamp of approval. However we as an organization should strive to achieve a higher standard of care for our employees and patients as well as our community. With the upcoming visit from JCAHO approaching we need address the past JCAHO visit and pay attention to some of our deficiencies. Our priority focus areas for our facility will be: Information Management, Medication Management, Communication and Infection Control. The focus of this executive summary will...
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...interdisciplinary teams to bring about the desired effect. In order to monitor compliance, the hospital utilizes a periodic performance review (PPR) tool to assess its performance by continuous monitoring and performance improvement activities. The PPR provides the chassis for continuous standards compliance and focuses on the essential systems and practices that affect patient care and safety. The hospital self-evaluates its adherence with all Joint Commission Accreditation Participation Requirements, National Patient Safety Goals, related Elements of Performance (EPs), and develops a Plan of Action for all areas of performance identified as being non-compliant. The hospital also develops Measures of Success (MOS) for determining whether the organization is successful in resolving identified problems. Nightingale Community Hospital provides various medical, surgical, ambulatory care, laboratory, pediatric and emergency services and is thereby accountable for maintaining compliance as per accreditation policies. Areas of...
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...Tracer Patient Audit AFT2 Accreditation Audit October 10th, 2014 Tracer Patient Audit With an audit by the Joint Commission (JC) in the near future, Nightingale Community Hospital (NCH) is performing a tracer patient survey to measure our compliance and identify issues that are in need of remediation. The practice of this type of survey tracks a patient’s care for the duration of their stay starting from the admission process and ending when they are discharged. This system allows us to assess our strengths and weaknesses concerning policy, procedures, and systems in place to provide quality care in conjunction with the standards set forth by the JC. Summary of Tracer Patient Audit Findings This particular survey was conducted concerning a patient that is a 67 year old female, presenting with fever and drainage approximately 5 weeks after an open hysterectomy. The tracer patient was subsequently admitted for a possible postoperative infection. The tracer patient then endured another surgery to treat the infection that started after the original surgery. The patient also received a central line which is used to administer long-term antibiotics. NCH is arranging to discharge the patient to go home with home health, with the aid of her husband, to help administer her antibiotic therapy after discharge. The audit of this particular patient’s care revealed areas that present an opportunity for correction and improvement. Specifically, the patient...
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...The safe and effective care of our patients depends greatly on the efficacy of our communication methods between staff in the same discipline and interdisciplinary staff. Communication among staff about patient care is so important that it is one of the Joint Commission’s National Patient Safety Goals. Joint Commission has elements of performance that has to be met to remain in compliance with their standards. In the area of pre-procedure verification, Nightingale is in compliance with making sure that the patient has an armband that can be used to match the other items in the procedure area to him or her. We also have a policy that states how verification should happen and at what stages. Even though there is a pre-procedure checklist, there is no mention of it in the policy. There is no mention of the latest nursing assessment on the pre-procedure checklist and that is one of the examples of relevant documentation to be present that JCAHO gave. With the standard of marking the procedure site, our policy outlines the need to mark sites before a procedure with the patient if possible especially with procedures that involve laterality, multiple structures or levels. In compliance with JCAHO, the policy went further to indicate other means of identifying locations like X-rays and needle localizations, listing the procedures that are exempt from marking and describing that the marker should be a permanent one. The area we fall out of compliance with the standard of marking...
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...Schools (HLC), and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). The reason I chose those organizations is that my present home located in San Diego, CA makes me curious as to how WASC operates. HLC was chosen because my future home, and ultimate target for a teaching position, is Bloomington, IN. Indiana is one of the19 states in HLC’s jurisdiction. This discussion will compare the ways that each association defines, addresses, and approaches an educational institution’s learning assessments program during the accreditation process. Higher Learning Commission Defining Learning Assessments HLC defines learning assessment structure in terms of their stated criteria and core standards. Evidence listed for these core components provides a more detailed definition of learning assessments. As of 1 January 2013, HLC’s accreditation process will be built on 5 criteria. HLC directly addresses learning assessments in 2 of its 5 accreditation criteria. Criteria #3- Teaching & Learning: Quality, Resources & Support Criteria #4- Teaching & Learning: Evaluation & Improvement Because Criteria 3 and 4 have specific learning assessment applications they alone will be discussed further. HLC derives Core Components for each of the Criteria. Two Core Components for criteria 3 are specific to student learning assessment: A) The institution demonstrates that the exercise of intellectual inquiry and the acquisition, application, and integration of...
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...Morehead State University | Accreditation and Evaluation Summary | IMS 421 | Marvin Stevenson 1-28-2015 | 1. Differentiate between programmatic and institutional accreditation. Continuing one’s education above the high school is an important decision and a life changing event. Therefore attending a college that offers accredited degrees can make a huge difference in a person’s future. A college program that is not accredited can mean, you are not eligible for federal financial aid, may not be able to transfer credits to another college or university, and you may not be able to attain an appropriate professional licensure in your field. This is why it is important for students to be aware of the type of accreditation offered by schools or the lack of accreditation missing by them. Therefore it is important to know the difference be the two types of accreditations. An institutional accredited program achieves its accreditation through representatives from dedicated accrediting institutions evaluate colleges and universities. This is a means for colleges and universities to assess their own performance and compare themselves to other schools. Before being granted institutional accreditation status, all aspects of a college or university are evaluated. If a school is awarded accreditation means that the institution meets certain standards of educational quality. In addition, institutional accreditation is more comprehensive and indicates that the institution...
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...Mock Accreditation Survey The first accrediting agency is the Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program (HFAP). The HFAP is a nationally recognized accreditation organization with deeming authority from Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS). Its mission is to advance high quality patient care and safety through objective application of recognized standards. The HFAP goal is to continue to help healthcare facilities deliver high quality patient care through the application of its consistent standards while continuing to streamline and improve its survey processes. 1. How do you comply with current Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention Hand Hygiene Guidelines? 2. How do you prevent pressure ulcers? What interventions...
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