The Influence and Practice of Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) on Human Resources Management in Healthcare

Abstract

Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations commonly known as JCAHO is a nonprofit organization. The organization is operational at a country level in the US and is currently working with over 20,000 healthcare organizations in the US The paper discusses the influence of HR standards as given by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations on strategic human resource management practices in healthcare sector.

Introduction3

JCAHO and healthcare in the US4

JCAHO and human resource management issues5

Conclusion6

References7

The Influence and Practice of Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) on Human Resources Management in Healthcare

Introduction

Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations commonly known as JCAHO is a nonprofit organization. The organization is operational at a country level in the US and is currently working with over 20,000 healthcare organizations in the US (Habich, 2006). Accreditation from the organization is recognized as the highest symbol of quality for any healthcare organization. The organization has set performance standards to be met in order to assure improvement in the overall healthcare delivery system in the US. There are 11 key areas of performance that are covered in the standards which are assessed every three years (Hunt, 2007). The company not only provides accreditation on the basis of evaluation results but also highlights areas that need improvement.

The paper discusses the influence of HR standards as given by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations on strategic human resource management practices in healthcare sector. The underlying philosophy of the HR standards that have been given by the company is given hereunder (Khatri, 2006).

The broad goals of the HR function are to identify and provide the right numbers of competent staff to meet the needs of the patients, clients, or residents served by the healthcare provider.

In the view of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, there are four key processes that help the HR department perform its functions optimally (Elliott, 2009). These are planning, recruitment of competent staff, improving the competence of staff through training and development and promoting self development in self improvement across organization.

JCAHO and healthcare in the US

JCAHO seeks to improve the quality of healthcare in the US. In particular, the standardization and accreditation from the organization has had a positive impact on patient safety. The number of errors that are recorded for the healthcare organizations have been found to decrease significantly after the year 2004 (Habich, 2006). This is so because these healthcare organizations have been trying to gain accreditation from JCAHO. This would not have been possible without the contributions of the standards designed and implemented by JCAHO. The standards cover not only the primary healthcare provider's conduct but all the other interrelated professional's conduct as well (Hunt, 2007). It places due importance on pharmacy and medication and care in the ambulance. In addition, the programs have played due importance on long-term care facilities and nursing ...