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This 4 page paper provides an overview of how regulatory agencies, including the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), the American College of Medical Quality, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) have influenced health outcomes in the hospital setting. Bibliography lists 4 sources
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4 pages (~225 words per page)
File: MH11_MHHeaMeasOut.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
quality improvements in the healthcare setting. The JCAHO has developed an accreditation process; one that applies stringent measures of quality based on assessments of outcomes related to specific medical
procedures and health problems. Mortality assessments relative to common indicators, ranging from acute myocardial infarctions (AMIs) to smoking cessation programming, have been used to assess hospitals for accreditation.
Though the accreditation process requires that hospitals participate in specific methods for treatment and demonstrate measurable outcomes, there is limited evidence that JCAHO accreditation demonstrates quality improvements measured by reduced
mortality rates for 8 distinct indicators; AMI, AMI without transfer, CHF (congestive heart failure), stroke, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, hip fracture and smoking cessation. The JCAHO is the nations
leader in hospital accreditation and hospital accreditation is necessary on a number of levels. First, hospitals that are accredited are recognized under the Medicare Act of 1965 to satisfy
federal health and safety requirements for Medicare participants (Chen et al, 2003). Second, accredited hospitals are often linked to educational programs. Finally, accrediting is used for marketing hospitals, with
accreditation standing as the presumed measure of performance and quality for each hospital. Approximately 80 percent of the nations hospitals have sought accreditation from the JCAHO at some time
(Chen et al, 2003). Accreditation has been identified as a measure of quality, but whether this results in measurable differences in outcomes for patients has been at the
center of debate. Chen et al (2003) assessed the correlation between JCAHO accreditation and measures of quality of care, specifically mortality rates, for patients who have AMIs. Chen et
al (2003) conducted this study because studies have found little direct link between accreditation and general hospital mortality rates, and so there was some question regarding disease-specific outcomes and accreditation.
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