July 27, 2006

GMC, DeWitt Receives Preliminary JCAHO Accreditation

DeWITT, Iowa – Staff at Genesis Medical Center, DeWitt planned more than three years for important visitors without even knowing  when the guests would arrive.

The date came recently and because of the extensive pre-planning, GMC, DeWitt has received preliminary accreditation from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, or JCAHO.  Final accreditation is expected in the next three months.

JCAHO is an independent, not-for-profit organization that is the premier accrediting group in health care. JCAHO maintains state-of-the-art standards that focus on improving the quality and safety provided by health care organizations.

The JCAHO surveyor cited three requirements for improvement during a two-day survey. All three requirements have been corrected.

JCAHO now does unannounced surveys instead of announced surveys when re-accrediting hospitals.  The unnanounced visits can take place as soon as 18 months following the last accreditation.  GMC, DeWitt had last been surveyed in March 2003.

“What the unnanounced surveys do is create an environment of consistent quality  You always have to be ready,’’ explained Deb Fox, Director of Quality at GMC, DeWitt.  “That is positive for our staff and for our patients.”

Jeff Cooper, CEO of Genesis Medical Center, DeWitt, said, “I would like to congratulate our staff for their work in maintaining the quality of care and patient safety to be prepared for the JCAHO survey.  The JCAHO survey may only come every three years, but offering quality and safety to patients is something we work hard at every day.’’

Fox said the JCAHO surveyor complimented the knowlege and demeanor of the hospital’s staff.

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