Accreditation in the healthcare organization what does it mean, and why is it so important in the healthcare field? According to Sollecito, and Johnson accreditation is a formal declaration by a designated authority that credits …show more content…
One of these challenges is would it be a good idea to make accreditation mandatory? Calling accreditation a voluntary program is not truly accurate in itself. The majority of hospitals in the United States are on a 3 year voluntary accreditation program. However most of them do not have to choice, stakeholder mandated some hospital to participate in an accreditation program to improve quality and safety. Hospitals are also encouraged by other external forces to adopt accreditation programs. Hospitals and clinics that adopt accreditation programs can receive incentives, and federal grants from Medicare and Medicaid. Third-parties payers also require for them to have some type of accreditation program to reassure that organizations are making effort to achieve published standards or address quality and safety issues (Sollecito and Johnson, …show more content…
This type of process has been deemed “process indicators” in which accreditation agencies focus their attention on how care is delivered rather than the outcomes of the activity (Sollecito and Johnson, 2013). By not reflecting on the outcomes of care, opponents of accreditation programs are concerned that they are limiting what is being contributed to the understanding of quality and safety. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has advocated that quality indicators are an effective way to measure health care safety and quality (AHRQ - Quality Indicators, n.d.). The relationship between accreditation and quality indicators has pose some concerns and using quality indicators can be problematic, when it comes to using the results found through the process. Can they be used independently or together and how to resolve the differences in the finding? For accreditation agencies trying to find the best way to stimulate improvement in quality and safety in a healthcare system that is constantly facing significant cost pressures and increasing demands will be a tough challenge (Sollecito and Johnson,