General FAQs
Standards FAQs
Survey Process FAQs
General FAQs
A continuous process whereby health care organizations are required to demonstrate to the Joint Commission that they are providing safe, high quality of care, as determined by compliance with Joint Commission standards, National Patient Safety Goals recommendations, and performance measurement requirements. Key components of this process are an on-site evaluation of an organization by Joint Commission surveyors, a Periodic Performance Review, and quarterly submission of performance measurement data to the Joint Commission, as applicable.
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With our online Quality Check™, you can "check up" on the performance of health care facilities, by reviewing their latest Quality Report.
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You can complete our online Quality Incident Report Form. For more information, please call 800-994-6610.
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Standards FAQs
Please check our the Standards FAQs section of our website. If you don't find your answer there, you can complete our Online Standards Form or call 630-792-5900.
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Survey Process FAQs
Your organization can normally be surveyed within three to four months after we receive your application. However, the key issue is whether you are ready to be surveyed. We will evaluate the past four months of service for compliance with the standards. If your organization is beginning to prepare for survey at the time of application, it should request to be surveyed at least four to six months later. Your application for survey is valid for 12 months from the date it is submitted. You may request a specific month for your survey and we will try to accommodate you.
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This varies considerably from organization to organization and depends on the amount of time and resources available to prepare for survey. Most organizations take one full year from the point of the initial decision to the actual survey date.
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You must be in compliance for four months on an initial survey, one year on a resurvey, two years for proficiency testing.
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This varies with the number of surveys conducted in the previous month but usually is about 45 days. Your organization is retroactively accredited to the day after survey, but you may not market your accreditation until you receive the final written report.
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We do not automatically transfer accreditation to new owners who acquire an accredited health care organization. Accreditation will not continue if significant changes occur to the circumstances existing at the time of the previous survey. An accredited organization must notify us no more than 30 days after it merges, is acquired, or undergoes any major change in services, location, capacity, or corporate structure. We will extend accreditation until we can determine if a special survey is necessary. Failure to notify us of ownership and service changes can result in a loss of accreditation.
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Contact the Customer Service Center toll free at 877-223-6866. You can view a catalog of all our publications online.
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