PHAB Accreditation: What it means for Public Health April 8, 2015 CPHA Health Education Committee

Objectives O Identify the purpose and goals of the Public Health Accreditation Board O Describe why accreditation is important for the advancement of public health O Demonstrate an understanding of the 7 Steps of Accreditation

What is the Public Health Accreditation Board? O The Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the continuous quality improvement of Tribal, state, local, and territorial public health departments O Chartered in 2007, launched in 2011 O

What is Health Department Accreditation? O Not unlike hospitals, academic institutions O The measurement of health department performance against a set of nationally recognized, practice-focused and evidenced- based standards. O National public health department accreditation has been developed because of the desire to improve service, value, and accountability to stakeholders.

Goal of Accreditation O The goal of the national public health department accreditation program is to improve and protect the health of the public by advancing the quality and performance of Tribal, state, local, and territorial public health departments.

Purpose of Accreditation O Accreditation demonstrates the capacity of the public health department to deliver the three core functions and the ten essential services of public health.

Benefits of Accreditation O Increases the agency’s credibility to its constituents O Demonstrates accountability to taxpayers, funding sources, and elected officials O Potentially increases access to resources that support quality improvement, address infrastructure gaps, and support new programs and process O Forces the department to always look for places to improve

Seven Steps of Accreditation 1. Pre-Application 2. Application 3. Document Selection and Submission 4. Site Visit 5. Accreditation Decision 6. Reports 7. Reaccreditation

Pre-Application O Prepares for accreditation O Assess Readiness for Application O Health director and accreditation coordinator must complete Orientation (online) O Submit Letter of Intent

Application O Health department submits application and pays fee O Completes Accreditation Coordinator Training O Application requires letter of support from appointing authority and three pre- requisites: 1. Community Health Needs Assessment 2. Community Health Improvement Plan 3. Department Strategic plan

Document Selection and Submission O Based on PHAB’s Standards and Measures, the health department selects documentation and uploads it to PHAB O Standards and Measures based on 10 Essential Services of Public Health, plus administration capacity and governing entity relationship – 12 Domains

12 Domains of PHAB Standards and Measures

Site Visit O Site visits will be conducted by a peer team of three to four PHAB-trained site visitors O The visit serves several purposes: O Verify the accuracy of documentation submitted by the health department O Seek answers to questions regarding conformity with the standards and measures O Provide opportunity for discussion and further explanation. O Last 2-3 days

Accreditation Decision O Following site visit, PHAB team of reviewers will submit a report to PHAB Accreditation Committee O Two Possibilities: O Accredited O Not Accredited

Reports O Annual reports O Health department submits annual reports describing how agency has addressed areas identified by PHAB as priority areas for improvement O Reports state that the department continues to be in conformity with standards and measures

Reaccreditation O Accreditation lasts 5 years O Submit new application O Department must participate in the entire accreditation process again

Questions?

Melissa Touma Accreditation Coordinator Connecticut Department of Public Health