What is S3?
S3 stands for The Strategic Surveillance System. The Strategic Surveillance System is a benefit provided exclusively to hospitals accredited by The Joint Commission.
Why was S3 developed?
One of the most compelling needs in the health care environment is actionable data and information that can be used to prioritize and drive quality and safety improvement. As performance expectations increase, so does the need to know how to use data to drive improvement. S3 is a tool that provides a series of risk assessment and comparative performance measure reports to help hospitals improve their care processes. The reports also help hospitals prioritize the actions to take for improvement.
What is included in S3?
S3 is a suite of information tools. The first available tool within the S3 application is the Performance Risk Assessment (PRA) tool. This tool assesses potential internal system risks by utilizing Priority Focus Process comparisons; rating comparative performance for all Priority Focus Areas and Clinical/Service Groups; and identifying specific data and findings that are contributing to specific results. Organizations are able to analyze comparative performance against national, state and other comparative benchmarks by Priority Focus Area and Clinical/Service Groups and trend historical data to identify risks, set priorities for attention, and undertake appropriate improvements.
What are some of the benefits of S3?
There are several benefits to S3.
- Hospitals have access to national and state benchmarks as well as select groups, in order to compare themselves to others.
- Hospitals with a common owner have the ability to compare S3 data among each hospital to identify trends or common areas for improvement.
- S3 helps drive and monitor systems improvement throughout an organization by providing ongoing quantitative feedback.
- S3 allows organizations to drill down to certain performance areas so they can compare themselves to others on a well-defined basis.
What is the source of the data provided by S3?
S3 uses data The Joint Commission currently has, which includes past survey findings, ORYX® core measure data, data from the Office of Quality Monitoring (complaints and non-self reported sentinel events), data from an organization’s electronic application, HCAHPS data and MedPAR data.
Do we need to provide The Joint Commission with more data for S3?
No. S3 is built from all existing data that The Joint Commission currently has. Future releases will include an option for an organization to include their own unique internal data though it will never be required.
How do we access these reports? How often do we receive them?
Reports are posted and updated quarterly on each organization’s secure Joint Commission extranet site, which requires a log-in and password. The tool allows you to drill back up to eight previous quarters.
Will this data be made available to the public?
No, this information is only available to authorized individuals of organizations accredited by The Joint Commission for their Hospital program.
Is S3 available for all hospitals?
S3 is for all Joint Commission-accredited hospitals. Hospitals are able to make use of the Performance Risk Assessment tool. Currently, critical access hospitals do not have access.
When will S3 be available?
The Performance Risk Assessment tool was made available to all Joint Commission-accredited hospital in mid-2007.
Does S3 affect an organization’s accreditation status?
No. S3 is not a requirement for accreditation, nor does it have any bearing on the accreditation decision.
Is there an additional cost involved with S3?
No. S3 is provided at no additional cost and serves as a value-added benefit for our accredited customers.
Will the concept of S3 be adapted for organizations other than hospitals?
The goal is to eventually spread this concept of S3 to all of The Joint Commission’s accreditation programs.