As I look back on 2007, I am struck by how many individuals have contributed to furthering the mission of The Joint Commission. It is a bittersweet acknowledgement, however, because many of these individuals are moving on to offer their time, talent and energy elsewhere. So, I’d like to offer a heartfelt thank you to the Behavioral Health Care Professional and Technical Advisory Committee members who will be leaving at the end of December. We asked a lot of you, and you always surpassed our expectations.
- Paul Lefkovitz, Ph.D., chair, representing the Association for Ambulatory Behavioral Healthcare
- Patricia Novak, Ph.D., vice chair, representing the National Association for Children’s Behavioral Healthcare
- Kevin Huckshorn, representing the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors
- Susan Rushing, representing the Mental Health Corporations of America
- Cheryl Schleuss, representing the National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems
Together, we made a difference. However, there is still more work to do. In 2008 we’ll be asking for your input on several projects. One of these is the Standards Improvement Initiative. The goal is to review and refine the standards — making them clearer, more objective and more applicable to behavioral health care organizations.
In addition, the standards for persons with developmental disabilities will be undergoing a separate and intensive updating. We plan to rely heavily on field input received on our WikiHealthCare™ site to accomplish this. It’s an excellent way for health care professionals to voice their opinions. It’s easy to register, click here. I look forward to working with you all in the year ahead.
Mary Cesare-Murphy, Ph.D.
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The Joint Commission has launched a project addressing how accreditation factors into liability insurers' underwriting practices.
“Liability insurance companies recognize that Joint Commission accredited behavioral health care organizations fare better when it comes to risk assessment and risk management,” says Katie Goryl, associate director, Payer Relations. “Insurers reward these organizations in several ways, such as insurance premium discounts, credits and other benefits.”
So far, four liability insurers have documented rewards to accredited behavioral health care organizations. These include:
- ACE American Insurance Company, Bay Shore, N.Y.
- MAG Mutual Insurance Company, Atlanta, Ga.
- Mental Health Risk Retention Group, Cedar Grove, N.J.
- Scottsdale Insurance Company, Cedar Grove, N.J.
If you want your carrier reviewed for placement on this list, send the name of your liability insurer to Goryl at kgoryl@jointcommission.org. Meanwhile, keep checking for additional listings as they become available by visiting the Liability Insurers section of our website.
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Accredited opioid treatment programs will transition to subscription billing starting in 2008. Subscription billing involves annual invoicing at a base rate and an additional fee to cover on-site review costs.
“OTP organizations receive their first annual fee invoice in the year in which they are due for survey,” explains Megan Marx, associate director, OTP project. “Subscription billing allows organizations to spread accreditation costs over the entire accreditation cycle. All other accreditation programs have already transitioned to subscription billing.”
Payment schedule
The annual fee will be posted to the secure extranet site on The Joint Commission Connect beginning in the year the OTP is due for survey.
The on-site fee invoice is posted to The Joint Commission Connect approximately seven to 10 days following the survey’s completion. This fee covers survey-related costs including airfare, lodging, meals, car rental, and all other fees required to send the surveyor to your organization.
A letter explaining the phase-in approach was mailed to all Joint Commission accredited opioid treatment providers in November 2007. A second letter will be sent in February further explaining the phase-in process and providing fee estimates for the full accreditation cycle.
For more information or to find out what your specific fees will be, contact the Joint Commission’s Pricing Unit at (630) 792-5115 or PricingUnit@jointcommission.org.
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Addiction Treatment Services (ATS) of Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Baltimore, Md., has won an Ernest Amory Codman Award for their initiative, “Improving Opioid Dependence Treatment Outcomes Using a Motivated Stepped Care Model.” The award recognizes excellence in the use of outcomes measurement by behavioral health care organizations to achieve improvements in the quality and safety of behavioral health care.
In the early 1990s, ATS experienced poor counseling attendance and high rates of continuing drug use among its methadone patients. Staff members recognized that their approach to treatment left a lot to be desired. Clinical decisions were not being made uniformly and predictably across counselors and patients. In addition, the severity and scope of the clinical problems of some patients was overwhelming many of the counseling staff. As a result, many patients did not receive adequate treatment.
Staff developed and implemented a Motivated Stepped Care treatment model as an alternative to standard methadone maintenance treatments. Today, services are matched to the severity of the patient’s substance abuse problem and the most severely affected patients are treated by the most experienced and highly trained staff. This patient-provider matching strategy has yielded excellent results for the clients and staff.
Results
- Increased group counseling attendance to 65 percent in 2002 from 14 percent in 2001.
- Increased individual counseling attendance to 94 percent in 2002 from 63 percent in 2001.
- Decreased positive urine tests to 54 percent in 2002 from 74 percent in 2001.
- Sustained improvement rates attributed to the model over 12 years.
- Retained 70 percent of patients in the program after six months.
- Replicated parts of the MSC model in other treatment clinics in Baltimore.
- Increased employee satisfaction in the clinic over any other area of the hospital with the exception of the human resources department.
To read more about this year’s Codman Award winners or to apply, go to the new Codman Award website.
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Expect to see more articles about complying with specific standards, survey preparation and best practices as a result of feedback received from a recent BHC News readership survey, says Mary Cesare-Murphy, executive director, Behavioral Health Care Accreditation Program.
In the survey, sixty-two percent of the respondents were from Joint Commission accredited behavioral health care organizations. Eighty-nine percent always or sometimes read each issue. The standards Q&A columns are generally the most well-read at 92 percent, followed by feature articles at 91 percent and the Newsline column with 89 percent of respondents reading them frequently or occasionally.
Article length was right on with 88 percent of respondents saying that feature articles were about right, 84 percent of respondents liking the length of Q&A articles, 80 percent liking the organization spotlights, and 93 percent liking the length of the Newsline feature.
In the open response section, people said they would like to see more examples of how to meet the standards in innovative ways, case studies, and how to prepare for initial surveys.
“We’re pleased that BHC News is well regarded by its readers,” says Cesare-Murphy. “We are planning to implement improvements based on this feedback.”
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BHC staff members attend meetings and conventions throughout the year. In 2008, we’ll be at:
- Substance Abuse Directors Association of Alaska, May 7, Anchorage, Alaska
- National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs, Indian Wells, Calif., May 18-21
- National Council for Community Behavioral Health Care, Boston, Mass., April 30-May 2
- United States Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association, Lombard, Ill., June 16-19
- State Associations of Addiction Services, Orland, Fla., June 22-25
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Free educational conference calls are available for Joint Commission Accredited Opioid Treatment Programs. The sessions take place from 11:30 to noon, CT, and cover a variety of topics. The 2008 dates are Feb. 20, March 19, May 21, July 16, Sept. 17 and Nov. 19. Call Customer Service at (877) 223-6866 to register for the programs and check on the topics. If you have questions, contact Megan Marx, associate director, OTP Project, at mmarx@jointcommission.org.
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Education
Behavioral Health Care: A Primer for Beginners
This is a pre-conference to the Accreditation Essentials program. This seminar provides fundamental information about the standards and the accreditation process. Topics include: on-site survey, scoring guidelines, periodic performance review, electronic Statement of Conditions, 2008 survey thresholds and accreditation decisions.
- March 25, Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.
- August 25, Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.
Behavioral Health Care: Accreditation Essentials
This interactive, solution-based seminar provides participants with practical strategies and implementation tips. Topics include global approaches to the standards, elements of performance, National Patient Safety Goals, and links to tracers and priority focus areas.
- March 26-27, Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.
- August 26-27, Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.
Publications
NEW! 2008 Comprehensive Accreditation Manual for Behavioral Health Care (CAMBHC)
Order code: CBHC08, $265
NEW! A Practical Guide to Documentation in Behavioral Health Care
Order code: BHC600, $99
Accreditation Process Guide for Behavioral Health Care
Order code: BHSP06SJ, $119
How to Meet the Most Challenging Joint Commission Requirements for Behavioral Health Care
Order code: MCRBH-06, $75
For information or to order products from Joint Commission Resources, Inc., go to the Joint Commission Resources Web Store or call (877) 223-6866.
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- BHC Accreditation (630) 792-5790
- Standards Interpretation Group (630) 792-5900
- BHC Account Representative (630) 792-3007
- Customer Service (630) 792-5800
- Pricing Unit (630) 792-5115
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