The Joint Commission has undergone a sweeping overhaul of quality metrics, named new members to its board of commissioners and announced several other moves over the last several weeks.
Six updates Becker's has covered since Nov. 28:
1. The patient safety organization has elevated health equity from a leadership standard to a national patient safety goal. The change will take effect on July 1, according to a Jan. 10 news release from The Joint Commission.
2. The Joint Commission has named three new members to its board of commissioners, including Susan Fox, president and CEO of White Plains (N.Y.) Hospital.
3. The organization is eliminating 168 standards (14 percent) and revising another 14 standards in an effort to make its accreditation programs as "efficient and impactful on patient safety, quality and equity as possible." Read more on the overhaul of quality metrics here.
4. The Joint Commission is launching a new voluntary certification program on health equity. Hospitals will be invited to pre-apply for certification in early 2023, though the application won't be available until July 1.
5. The accrediting body will hold a safety briefing with healthcare organizations at the start of every accreditation survey starting in 2023, the organization said Dec. 13.
6. In November, The Joint Commission updated its timeline for how often it will evaluate licensed practitioners' ability to provide care from two years to three.