Medical tourism outside the country has become a very real possibility with the growing globalisation of the world. International medical travel is primarily driven by the desire to access specialized treatments, reduce the duration of waiting, or have more affordable procedures.
One of the most important criteria you must take into account when you want to obtain medical care in a foreign country is whether the hospital you choose has internationally recognized accreditation. Accreditation is an indicator of a hospital’s commitment to quality, safety, and ethical medical practices.
Gaining accreditation means that the hospital guarantees high-quality care, safety, and productivity of its operations. To the patient contemplating medical treatment internationally, this stamp of approval is more than a bit of flattery, but an affirmation and insurance that what a patient set out to accomplish regarding medical treatment will be done by a fully qualified hospital.
For individuals exploring options in international medical travel, understanding the full importance of accreditations and bodies that issue them can dramatically improve the hospital you select, safety of your health and peace of mind.
The importance of Hospital Accreditation in Global Healthcare
Hospital accreditation is an elaborate procedure in which outside bodies assess a hospital according to established performance requirements. These criteria assess patient safety, clinical results, infrastructure, ethical behavior, and the quality of care in general. The accreditation enables hospitals to operate within very strict parameters that conform to the global best practices. This is particularly important in the context of international medical travel, when the patients do not know much about local healthcare regulations.
Key Benefits of Hospital Accreditation
- Quality Assurance Method: It guarantees that a hospital follows the best practice in patient safety practices, infection control practices, medication management procedures and medical personnel qualifications, among other areas. Such an organized assessment lowers the chance of medical mistakes and adverse events, which directly translates into safer results among the patients.
- Offers Uniformity of Care: This implies that an accredited hospital will work under the same framework of quality despite the country or culture.
- Helps Develop Trust and Confidence: That a hospital has passed a rigorous independent evaluation and has satisfied strict international standards gives a feeling of security. This trust is critical considering that patients are already experiencing the tensions brought about by the sickness.
- Lastly, accreditation is usually an indication of the effort by a given hospital to keep on improving. Accreditation is not a one-time thing; it means self-evaluation, periodic inspection, and commitment to realize the current developments in the field of medicine and patient services. This assures that the accredited hospitals are always achieving means of improving the services and sustaining their performance.
Leading Hospital Accreditation Bodies Globally
A number of high-ranked institutions provide the guidelines for healthcare accreditation all over the globe. Their accreditations are not just decorations of any sort but an intensive cycle of review, reformation and compliance. These are the best accreditation agencies that ensure good quality in international hospitals.
1. Joint Commission International (JCI)
Joint Commission International (JCI) is an internationally known and recognized to be the best and acclaimed healthcare accrediting organization. Being an international unit of the U.S.-based Joint Commission, JCI is very well established globally as healthcare organizations in more than 70 countries are accredited by it.
Role and Standards: The mission of JCI is to enhance quality and patient safety in healthcare across the globe. This is attained through the creation of evidence-based standards which are universal and patient-based. Areas covered by these standards are enormous and they include:
- International Patient Safety Goals (IPSGs): The IPSGs deal with the areas of high concern on patient safety, including the correct identification of patients, communication efficiency among the caregivers, medication safety and prevention of surgical site infection.
- Access to Care and Continuity of Care: Making sure that patients get proper access to the services, and that there is a proper continuity of their care in various departments and settings.
- Patient Assessment: Consistent and rigorous assessment of patients.
- Patient Care: Delivery of comprehensive and safe clinical care.
- Anaesthesia and Surgical Care: Tough guidelines with regard to safe administration of anaesthesia as well as surgical practices.
- Medication Management and Use: Safe use of dispensing and prescribing medication.
- Infection prevention and control: Infection prevention and control processes.
- Facility Management and Safety: Maintaining a safe physical environment for patients, staff, and visitors.
- Information on Employees: Having well-qualified and educated healthcare personnel.
The accreditation by JCI is sometimes called the “Gold Seal of Approval”. It is an unreservedly high bar of judgment of excellence. Hospitals pursuing the JCI accreditation are evaluated through a thorough on-site survey with people who have experience in the field of healthcare. Such survey will consist of a detailed examination of records, interviews with personnel and patients, and a direct observation of care procedures. Accreditation has a lifespan of three years, and compliance is periodically checked.
2. International Society for Quality in Health Care (ISQua)
ISQua plays an exclusive and very important role in the international accreditation domain. ISQua is a non-profit independent organization founded in 1985 with a view to encouraging quality improvement in healthcare worldwide. It is commonly known as the accreditor of accreditors as it certifies accreditation agencies.
Role and Standards: The major area of interest in ISQua is the improvement of the quality of healthcare systems and healthcare safety across the world by offering external evaluation services to accreditation bodies and standards. In its International Accreditation Programme (IAP), ISQua evaluates:
- Health and Social Care Standards: Assessment of the strength and evidence base of the standards produced by other accreditation parties.
- External Evaluation Bodies: Evaluation of the procedures, leadership and objectivity of the bodies that issue accreditations of hospitals.
- Surveyor Training Programs: This involves making sure individuals who administer the accreditation surveys are well-trained and competent.
- Quality and Patient Safety Training Programmes: Accreditation of training programmes which teach healthcare professionals quality improvement and patient safety.
Other International Accreditation Organizations
Although JCI and ISQua are most important, there are few other trustworthy agencies that are involved in the global hospital accreditation scenario, usually focusing on different regions or different kinds of care:
- Accreditation Canada International (ACI): Working as the international division of Accreditation Canada, ACI provides its accreditation services to healthcare organizations spread across the globe with a special focus on patient-centered care and quality enhancement.
- DNV Healthcare (Det Norske Veritas): DNV is a company that deals with different sectors, but it also offers hospital accreditation to the whole world. Their philosophy tends to merge these quality management system standards, such as ISO 9001 with the particular needs of healthcare.
- Global Healthcare Accreditation (GHA): GHA is a relatively new accreditation body whose specific goal is to boost the patient experience and care excellence of traveling patients. Their standards aim at making hospitals effectively serve any international patient through the pre-arrival to post-discharge of international patients.
- Australian Council on Healthcare Standards International (ACHSI): ACHSI has accreditation services in the Asia-Pacific and beyond, based in Australia, with a focus on the maintenance of quality and patient safety through constant improvement.
Accreditation: Red Flags to Look Out For
- Obsolete Certification: Certification ought to be refreshed every single now and again.
- Vague Claims: Hospitals that claim to have international standards, but do not specify them are not to be trusted.
- Unverified Entities: Go with those hospitals supported by JCI, NABH, ACI or any other ISQua-reviewed agencies.
How To Check Real Accredited Hospitals
- Visit Accreditor Websites: Use the official lists found on JCI, ACI, NABH and other similar websites.
- Demand Proof: Credible hospitals do not hesitate to provide their certificates of excellence.
- Use Trusted Travel Facilitators: These can usually be partnered with hospitals that have been vetted.
- Cross-Reference with the Medical Tourist Organizations: The organizations often list accredited and registered partners.
Conclusion
For individuals considering international medical travel, proper and authentic accreditation offers assurance of quality of hospitals and their services. It denotes the fact that the hospital follows globally accepted clinical and ethical standards.
By using the hospitals that have been accredited by such associations as JCI, ACHSI, NABH, or ACI, and approved by ISQua, you can make a substantial change in the risk that accompanies cross-border care. In a globalized healthcare sphere, hospital accreditation is not only advantageous but essential.
