Accreditation surveyors provide positive feedback

Accreditation Canada surveyors, from left: Chris Gustavson, Catherine Danbrook, Dr. Orlando de Silva, Sam Kearns, and Sue Carpenter.

After a busy five days in Niagara in early February, the five surveyors with Accreditation Canada provided feedback to a gathering of NHS staff, physicians and board members, and the early results are overwhelmingly positive.

The surveyors told the gathering that the NHS is compliant in more than 95% of the 1,712 criteria that Accreditation Canada uses to evaluate organizations against national standards! This is excellent news and demonstrates the diligent efforts of everyone to make improvements in a wide range of areas since the 2006 survey. Full results are expected in the near future.

Highlights since last survey

Successes: previous recommendations addressed; new hospital development; medication management processes enhanced and implemented; infection prevention & control policies and procedures enhanced; informed consent process; formalized program-level goals and objectives

Opportunities/Challenges: fiscal challenges; work force plans (vacant positions); sensitivity with changes (intense media & community scrutiny)  «