Hospitals can meet accreditation requirements, track quality measures, and deliver appropriate care, yet still see patients experience poor outcomes after they leave the building. One of the biggest opportunities for improving quality lies in what happens between healthcare settings.
Accreditation leaders should look beyond the survey itself and consider how accreditation can support continuous compliance, internal risk identification, staff engagement, and quality improvement.
The initial appointment of physicians and allied health practitioners in hospitals often receives more attention than their reappointment. However, the reappointment process presents a greater exposure to negligence and liability.
Hospitals adapting to The Joint Commission’s Accreditation 360 framework see changes that put greater pressure on organizations to demonstrate—with evidence—how operational decisions connect to patient safety.
In June, CMS issued a final rule designed to strengthen oversight of accrediting organizations (AO), reduce conflicts of interest, and create greater consistency between AO and state agency survey processes.
CMS recently clarified how accrediting organizations and state survey agencies must coordinate when a provider temporarily loses deemed status because of condition-level deficiencies.
As many organizations continue to focus on implementing artificial intelligence (AI) safely, another question is beginning to emerge: How will surveyors evaluate an organization's oversight of these tools?
Through its new Health Outcomes Accreditation and Community‑Focused Care Accreditation, the National Committee for Quality Assurance is reshaping accreditation around outcomes, community impact, and digital trust.
