JCAHO (Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations)
JCAHO (Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations)
AOTA participates in the Professional and Technical Advisory Committees (PTACs) of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). These committees were established in 1992 to improve communications with health care professional groups and ensure that the Joint Commission gets important input when developing its services and products. Today, more than 200 professional organizations are involved in the PTACs. AOTA participates in PTACs for the following JCAHO accreditation programs: Ambulatory Care, Behavioral Healthcare, Hospitals, Home Care and Long-Term Care, and Assisted Living.
The mission of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations is to "continuously improve the safety and quality of care provided to the public through the provision of health care accreditation and related services that support performance improvement in health care organizations."
The Joint Commission evaluates and accredits more than 15,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. An independent, not-for-profit organization, the Joint Commission is the nation's predominant standards-setting and accrediting body in health care. Since 1951, the Joint Commission has maintained state-of-the-art standards that focus on improving the quality and safety of care provided by health care organizations. The Joint Commission's comprehensive accreditation process evaluates an organization's compliance with these standards and other accreditation requirements.
The Joint Commission also awards Disease-Specific Care (DSC) Certification to health plans, disease management service companies, hospitals, and other care delivery settings that provide disease management and chronic care services. The Joint Commission's Certification Program for DSC provides a comprehensive evaluation of disease or condition-specific services, including, but not limited to asthma, diabetes, congestive heart failure, coronary artery disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, skin and wound management, and primary stroke care.