Why Do Laboratories Choose The Joint Commission?

Currently, The Joint Commission accredits over 1,500 organizations providing laboratory services. We understand the critical role laboratory services play in the overall patient experience — both inpatient and outpatient. The Joint Commission’s accreditation process concentrates on operational systems critical to the safety and quality of patient care. We are a strong accreditation partner with capabilities across the continuum of care.

Curious how Joint Commission Laboratory accreditation can benefit your organization? Our team of experts can help.

A key component of our certified organizations positive accreditation experience relies on our consistent survey process and experienced lab surveyors, including pathologists, who review the entire scope of the laboratory testing process to help identify risk and provide guidance on best practices:

• All Joint Commission lab surveyors have a master’s degree at minimum, have worked in at least three technical specialty areas of laboratory medicine and have more than five years of hands-on laboratory management experience.
• Our surveyors conduct up to 60 to 70 laboratory surveys annually and their expertise is closely aligned with an organization’s needs where appropriate, making them an invaluable resource and partner for your laboratory.

We support you with a robust patient-centric survey:

• Evidence-based, non-prescriptive standards set the bar while allowing laboratories the flexibility to meet compliance based on their services.
• SAFER™ Matrix identifies and help prioritize performance improvement efforts on areas with the highest risk of potential adverse outcomes.
• Unique Tracer Methodology proactively reviews the entire testing process and how the laboratory interacts with other areas to deliver care to the patient, helping you mitigate risks before they can become costly problems.

Controlling costs, without compromising quality or the scope of services provided, remains a top priority for laboratory leaders like you:

• Side-by-side comparisons of fees often show a significant, favorable advantage for the Joint Commission Laboratory Accreditation Program, which has been validated by our accredited organizations.
• The Joint Commission does not require reciprocal surveys at other organizations, minimizing costly disruption for your laboratory.

Because of our ability to work with the whole hospital or health system, achieving Joint Commission accreditation can elevate your laboratory’s visibility within the entire system, fostering greater collaboration and alignment with other departments. This helps the hospital or health system better appreciate the laboratory’s value and good work, while understanding the constraints and obstacles to providing high-quality, accurate results in a timely manner:

• Working with a single accreditation organization for both hospital and laboratory facilities is also valuable because doing so reduces the time the entire organization spends on managing accreditation activities.
• Our Laboratory Accreditation Program complements our hospital accreditation process, with 11 of 13 accreditation standards chapters shared with hospital standards chapters.

We walk the journey with you. The Joint Commission offers unmatched support throughout the accreditation process to ensure you stay on track. Explore a variety of educational resources including online learning webinars and an annual laboratory Conference — providing the educational support for you and your organization.