The Joint Commission has granted The University of Toledo Medical Center hospitals and clinics full accreditation for the next three years following an unannounced four-day visit that began on Veterans Day in November.
Mark Chastang, vice president and executive director of UTMC, received the official notice last week by letter.
“We knew we performed well during the Joint Commission visit based on remarks made by the surveyors; however, it’s always a good feeling to receive the official notice of accreditation,” Chastang said.
During the exit conference, the surveyors told the UTMC team that it was “very impressed” with its operational systems and the quality of care it provides to the northwest Ohio community. In fact, one surveyor said UTMC is the type of facility he would recommend to family members.
“UTMC continues to be rated as one of the finest academic health-care centers in the country,” said Dr. Jeffrey Gold, provost and executive vice president for health affairs and dean of the College of Medicine. “This Joint Commission accreditation is further external proof that UTMC has some of the most talented and dedicated health-care professionals around. We are very grateful for all of the UTMC family who worked so hard to participate in this national survey and sustain a culture of true excellence.”
The Joint Commission only had four recommendations for improvements out of 258 standards, and none of them were directly related to patient care.
The Joint Commission evaluates and accredits more than 15,000 health-care organizations and programs in the United States. The not-for-profit organization is the nation’s predominant standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.
During its visit, the Joint Commission’s four surveyors selected several patients at random and followed their progress and care throughout their hospital stay. Areas of focus included falls, restraints, pain management, medication management, communication handoffs, discharge planning, and identification and management of patients at suicide risk, among dozens of others.
The surveyors also performed detail-oriented evaluations of everything from preventative maintenance on equipment to medical staff credentialing and privileging.
