Any laboratory that meets the following requirements may apply for a Joint Commission accreditation survey under the laboratory standards:
The organization operates in the United States or its territories, or is run by the U.S. government or under a charter of Congress if outside the United States.
The organization assesses and improves the quality of its services.
The organization identifies the services it offers, indicating which it provides directly, under contract, or through other arrangements.
The organization provides services covered by Joint Commission standards.
Joint Commission laboratory standards are intended for a wide range of laboratories, and lab services such as Point of Care Testing, including those in:
- Hospitals
- Clinics
- Long term care facilities
- Home care organizations
- Behavioral health organizations
- Assisted reproductive clinics
- Public health laboratories, including Indian Health Service laboratories
- Ambulatory sites
- Independent laboratories
- Blood transfusions and donor centers
- Federally owned laboratories
- Physician office laboratories
Joint Commission accredited laboratories are certifiable under Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA'88) requirements. CLIA defines laboratory testing as analyzing a substance removed from the body and using this information for the diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of any disease, impairment, or assessment of the health of human beings.
CLIA divides laboratory testing into three categories:
- Waived tests: Simple procedures with little chance of negative outcomes if performed inaccurately
- Moderately complex tests: More complex than waived tests but usually automated, such as blood counts
- Highly complex tests: Nonautomated or complicated tests requiring considerable judgement, such as cross matching of blood
For all tests not waived, CLIA requires an on-site survey or inspection by an approved agency, such as the Joint Commission.
CLIA regulations require a laboratory survey every two years. Under the Advantage of One plan, all laboratories within your organization can be reviewed as part of one survey.
If your laboratory is part of another Joint Commission accredited health care organization, your laboratory survey will not ordinarily take place at the same time as your health care organization's triennial survey. However, during the triennial survey we'll review your laboratory under several standards contained in the Joint Commission manual used for your parent organization's survey, just as we do for all other departments,
The Joint Commission recognizes College of American Pathologists (CAP) and COLA accreditation in lieu of our own laboratory survey, but we do not grant dual accreditation.