[Towards an accreditation system for the Dutch hospitals]

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Quality Improvement in Hospitals
• Accreditation Systems

Context:

• The Netherlands system for hospital accreditation originated from the Pilotproject Accreditation (PACE) in 1989.
• The Netherlands Institute for Accreditation of Hospitals (NAIH) was established in 1999 by key healthcare organizations.
• Hospital accreditation in the Netherlands is a voluntary process for entire organizations or specific departments.

Purpose:

• To assess the availability of organizational requirements for quality assurance in Dutch hospitals.
• To identify opportunities for improvement within hospital operations rather than solely accounting for existing quality.
• To provide a framework for evaluating quality systems using department-wise and hospital-wide standards.

Summary:

• The NAIH accreditation process involves peer experts from Dutch hospitals evaluating adherence to standards.
• Accreditation standards are developed by healthcare professionals within Dutch hospitals.
• The system complements existing 'visitities' organized by medical specialist societies and can recognize external certificates.

Impact:

• Trial accreditations conducted from 1996-1998 in 19 hospitals indicated significant added value.
• The accreditation system aims to enhance organizational quality assurance and drive continuous improvement.
• Peer review methodology ensures an objective assessment based on internally developed standards.