Here are The Joint Commission’s guidelines for appropriately publicizing and announcing accreditation or certification:
1. If your program or organization has sites or offers services that are not accredited or certified, any reference to accreditation or certification must clearly specify which sites/services are accredited and/or certified.
2. Accreditation and/or certification does not “endorse” a program or organization’s quality of care, nor does it “prove,” “assure” or “testify” that a program or organization provides quality care.
3. Accurately state the accreditation or certification received from The Joint Commission. For example:
(a) Before an organization can only say its program or the organization is the “first” program or organization in a city, county, state and/or country to receive accreditation or certification, it must receive written approval from The Joint Commission department of communications and corporate marketing.
(b) An organization may not say that its program or the organization is the “only” program or organization in a city, county, state and/or country to receive accreditation or certification as this may not be true and can be misleading.
4. Your organization is not permitted to publicize its accreditation or certification decision until the decision is posted to your secure extranet site.
5. If your organization has achieved Advanced Certification for Primary Stroke Centers, Advanced Certification for Comprehensive Stroke Centers and/or Advanced Certification in Heart Failure, there are special guidelines for using The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s designated certification marks.
More Articles on Accreditation:
AAAASF Accredits Atlantic Plastic Surgery Center
AAAHC Approved to Accredit Qualified Health Plans
AAAHC Accredits GastroIntestinal Healthcare
