Accreditation standard to improve Quality of Care and Safety of Patient and Staff
HONG KONG – July 8, 2010. Union Hospital is awarded full accreditation for four years by the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS) with 7 Extensive Achievements, thus becoming one of the pioneer hospitals in Hong Kong to have received the accreditation. The official ACHS Organization Wide Survey (OWS) was held on 22-26 March 2010 at Union Hospital and the assessments are based on the three functions of the hospital’s operation, namely Clinical, Support and Corporate.
The 7 criteria graded Extensive Achievement (EA) of Union Hospital are:
- The incidence of falls and fall injuries is minimized through a falls management.
- The Organization ensures that the correct patient receives the correct procedure on the correct site.
- Input is sought from consumers, carers and the community in planning, delivery and evaluation of the health service.
- Consumers / patients are informed of their rights and responsibilities.
- The organization makes provision for customers / patients from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and consumers / patients with special needs.
- The continuing employment and performance development system ensures the competence of staff and volunteers.
- Emergency and disaster management supports safe practice and a safe environment.
The New Healthcare Standard
ACHS is an international accrediting organization recognized by the International Society for Quality in Healthcare (ISQua) and has been selected as the partner accrediting agent for the Pilot Scheme for Hong Kong hospitals by the Food and Health Bureau. The ACHS undertakes a comprehensive EQuIP standards review and consultation process at least every four years to ensure the standards. There are 45 EQuIP 4 criteria in total and 14 of them are mandatory criteria with 5 levels of grading system, namely Little Achievement (LA), Some Achievement (SA), Moderate Achievement (MA), Extensive Achievement (EA), and Outstanding Achievement (OA). Mandatory criteria are those where a rating of Moderate Achievement (MA) or higher is required to gain or maintain ACHS EquIP 4 accreditation.
Pioneer in Healthcare Service
“The achievement reinforces our enthusiasm and belief to provide a quality healthcare service. The awarded 7 criteria encompass a wide range of our services and activities centering around patient safety, service improvement in response to patients’ needs and demands, staff development and provision of a safe environment for both patients and staff,” said Dr. Anthony Lee, Chief Hospital Manager & Medical Director of Union Hospital. “This is truly reflective of the commitment from top management and staff at all levels to high quality health care, patient and staff safety.”
Mr. Brian Johnston, Chief Executive of the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards warmly congratulated the management and all staff of the Union Hospital on its success in achieving accreditation status. “The survey outcome is a wonderful reflection of the Hospital's commitment to continuous quality improvement,” he said. “The Hospital has committed to an important journey to achieve and maintain very standards of care for the services it provides to the community. Everyone should take pride in what is being achieved at the Hospital. ACHS is very proud to be part of that journey,” he concluded.
Other international recognition of Union Hospital
Union Hospital has received accreditation from various local and international organizations in the past, namely, from Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance (LRQA) in 1999 for the ISO9002:1994 quality management system, then British Standards Institution (BSI) as from 2002 for the ISO9001:2000 and 2008 upgrade, the Trent Accreditation Scheme (TAS) of the UK with the other private hospitals since 2000, and the Hong Kong College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists as from 2000 and 2003 for the Obstetrics and Gynaecology service respectively.
About Union Hospital
Union Hospital, the only private hospital in the Eastern New Territories, was established in 1994. It is a progressive and contemporary hospital service provider, fully accredited by various international and local institutions. Union Hospital is committed to delivering quality healthcare in the community and beyond, and has developed a reputation for patient-centric services, state-of-the-art technology and premium facilities.
Website: www.union.org
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