The Health Care Accreditation Council (HCAC) of Jordan’s comprehensive accreditation programme has been granted accreditation by the International Society for Quality in Health Care (ISQua). HCAC has become the third health care accreditation organization in the world to gain all three international accreditations set by ISQua. The only other two countries that have received this prestigious international recognition are Australia and Netherlands.
ISQua, the world's only accrediting agency for health care accreditation bodies, acknowledged HCAC's accreditation program as a formally benchmarked, internationally recognized accreditation body, ranking among the world's top-tier health care accreditation bodies. ISQua launched its International Accreditation Programme (IAP) in 1999. It is the only international programme that accredits the accreditors.
The ISQua international accreditation standards are intended to verify that the accrediting organization is able to measure the quality of its services and performance against internationally recognized standards. The ISQua accreditation process involved self-assessment by HCAC, as well as a thorough review by the ISQua's expert surveyors, who themselves have extensive experience in the health care accreditation field as well as meetings with HCAC accredited hospitals and the HCAC certified surveyors.
HCAC staff spent a year preparing the detailed self-assessment report required for submission prior to the arrival of the survey team. In January ISQua surveyors from Australia, Canada and South Africa conducted an intensive on-site survey at HCAC, evaluating every department and its function within the organization based on HCAC's accreditation programme and the HCAC mission.
May Abu Hamdia of HCAC explains,” Obtaining ISQua accreditation is a lengthy, but worthwhile process, and we are proud of everyone in our organization, who worked diligently to fulfill the complex requirements set by ISQua."Triona Fortune of ISQua adds, "Three accreditation awards for such a young organization is an incredible achievement."
Said Darwazah of HCAC stated that this international accreditation signaled a new era, "ISQua's international accreditation is recognized as the highest standard of achievement for health care accreditation bodies worldwide, and accredited agencies such as HCAC are committed to quality and continuous improvement through rigorous and comprehensive peer review. International accreditation by ISQua is a symbol to our stakeholders and clients that HCAC has committed to providing high-quality services. It sends signals of confidence to the community it serves and increases an organization's competitive edge in the marketplace."
