CARF (The Rehabilitation Accreditation Commission)
AOTA is a member of CARF's International Advisory Committee (IAC), composed of representatives of national professional societies, national organizations representing providers, and consumers' organizations. The IAC provides input to CARF on the development and revision of standards. In addition, the IAC provides feedback on the survey process and surveyors as reported by organizational members.
Founded in 1966, CARF is a private, not-for-profit organization that promotes quality rehabilitation services. It does this by establishing standards of quality for organizations to use as guidelines in developing and offering their programs or services to consumers. CARF uses the standards to determine how well an organization is serving its consumers and how it can improve.
CARF produces separate Standards Manuals for behavioral health, medical rehabilitation, and employment and community services. A Standards Manual for adult day services was developed in 1999 and one for assisted living in 2000. In 2003 CARF merged with the Continuing Care Accreditation Commission and now accredits continuing care retirement communities and long-term-care systems. CARF provides specialty certification programs for spinal cord systems of care (for persons with spinal cord injury) and for stroke specialty programs.
The CARF standards are developed with input from consumers, rehabilitation professionals, state and national organizations, and funders. Every year the standards are reviewed and new ones are developed to keep pace with changing conditions and current consumer needs.