The Joint Commission recently updated its policy regarding notification of changes within accredited organizations, requiring advance notice before the move is made.
The “Notifying The Joint Commission About Organization Changes” policy appears in the Accreditation Process (ACC) chapter of the Comprehensive Accreditation Manuals.
Accredited organizations previously needed to notify TJC within 30 days after a significant change. Now TJC says it wants time to consider the potential accreditation effect of changes before they are made, so the policy was updated to require organizations to provide written notification “when the change is initially contemplated.” TJC defines that as “when leadership within the organization has approved moving forward with the proposed change and identified a timeframe for implementing that change.”
Among other considerations, The Joint Commission will determine if the change will necessitate an on-site survey afterward. TJC also plans to update a similar policy, “Notifying The Joint Commission About Staffing Firm Changes,” in the Health Care Staffing Services Certification Manual to reflect the revisions.
After the change has been made, The Joint Commission expects the organization to update its electronic application for accreditation (E-App) within 30 days.
More information on the policy change is available online at: http://bit.ly/2cRw5I2.
