Union County Hospital Awarded Critical Access Hospital Accreditation From The Joint Commission
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Anna, IL – July 24, 2017) – Union County Hospital (UCH) today announced it has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval® for Critical Access Hospital Accreditation by demonstrating continuous compliance with its performance standards. The Gold Seal of Approval® is a symbol of quality that reflects an organization’s commitment to providing safe and effective patient care.
UCH underwent a rigorous, unannounced two-day onsite survey on March 24, 2017. During the review, a team of Joint Commission expert surveyors evaluated compliance with hospital standards related to several areas, including emergency management, environment of care, infection prevention and control, leadership, and medication management. Surveyors also conducted onsite observations and interviews.
The Joint Commission has accredited hospitals for more than 60 years. More than 4,000 general, children’s, long-term acute, psychiatric, rehabilitation and specialty hospitals currently maintain accreditation from The Joint Commission, awarded for a three-year period. In addition, approximately 360 critical access hospitals maintain accreditation through a separate program.
“Joint Commission accreditation provides hospitals with the processes needed to improve in a variety of areas from the enhancement of staff education to the improvement of daily business operations,” said Mark G. Pelletier, RN, MS, chief operating officer, Division of Accreditation and Certification Operations, The Joint Commission. “In addition, our accreditation helps hospitals enhance their risk management and risk reduction strategies. We commend Union County Hospital for its efforts to become a quality improvement organization.”
“Union County Hospital is pleased to receive accreditation from The Joint Commission, the premier health care quality improvement and accrediting body in the nation,” added Jim Farris, CEO at UCH. “The standards established by The Joint Commission exceed all applicable state licensure and federal certification requirements. Hospitals seeking accreditation go through a much more rigorous survey process than non-accredited facilities.”
Farris went on to add, “In 2016, there were 58 critical access hospitals in the state of Illinois and of that number, only 23 are accredited by The Joint Commission. Union County Hospital is proud to be one of those hospitals, who despite being a small, rural hospital, continually strive to improve our processes and services enabling us to provide quality care within our community.”
The Joint Commission’s hospital standards are developed in consultation with health care experts and providers, measurement experts and patients. The standards are informed by scientific literature and expert consensus to help hospitals measure, assess and improve performance.
The Joint Commission
Founded in 1951, The Joint Commission seeks to continuously improve health care for the public, in collaboration with other stakeholders, by evaluating health care organizations and inspiring them to excel in providing safe and effective care of the highest quality and value. The Joint Commission accredits and certifies more than 21,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. An independent, nonprofit organization, The Joint Commission is the nation’s oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care. Learn more about The Joint Commission at www.jointcommission.org.