Program used by a national home infusion therapy provider to prepare for Joint Commission site surveys

A process developed by a national provider of home infusion therapy to prepare branch pharmacy centers for site surveys by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) is described. Each of the 20 branches to be surveyed by JCAHO was visited three times by a corporate quality assurance team, which consisted of a pharmacy quality assurance manager and a nursing quality assurance manager. During the initial visit, the team performed a baseline quality assurance audit based on pre-established audit criteria. During the second visit, the team conducted a mock survey that replicated the official JCAHO survey. The final visit was scheduled to coincide with the JCAHO survey; its purpose was to provide support to the branch. Results from each of the visits were documented and reviewed with branch and corporate management. As of January 1990, 19 branches and the corporate service had been surveyed. Sixteen branches received a three-year JCAHO accreditation; the JCAHO accreditation status of the remaining three branches is pending. The JCAHO surveyor made only minor recommendations during the oral summary of the survey results. A program for preparing the staff at branch facilities of a major home infusion therapy provider for JCAHO surveys was successful.