Choose to be accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHO)? At times that seems like choosing to go to the dentist. It hurts but you know it\’s good for you. The truth of the matter is that maintaining JCAHO accreditation is expensive and challenging but we do it because it is one of the ways that we can demonstrate to the referral community and to third party payers that our treatment meets all of the most contemporary standards for quality care of the chemically dependent.

JCAHO is a private, nationally recognized organization that sets standards for healthcare in our country. We pay JCAHO to survey us and to measure our performance against those national standards and the performance of like organizations across the country. The JCAHO standards manual is extensive and continually evolves as health care evolves. In order to be accredited by JCAHO we must demonstrate compliance with each and every one of those standards. We also must continually remain in compliance with the evolving standards as JCAHO requires periodic submission of performance reports and makes random unannounced survey visits to accredited organizations to ensure ongoing compliance. JCAHO accreditation is significant because it gives us opinions from health care experts outside of our organization about the quality of the care at our alcohol rehab centers. Our compliance efforts are organized, guided and inspired with the assistance of many. The survey process itself is long and grueling. JCAHO surveyors visit each of our facilities examining documentation and interviewing staff and patients. Each survey lasts three to four days.

More good news: I haven\’t forgotten the title of this article. It is, of course, only tangentially related to the important news of JCAHO accreditation. Digressing is typical of people in my demographic group. At the end of the last survey our surveyor asked each member of the leadership team what they had learned during the survey. Their answers were thoughtful, professional and, of course, respectful. Thankfully, the surveyor didn\’t asked me what I had learned because her question caused me to think of an e-mail a good friend of mine sent me recently entitled \”I have learned…\” Here it is:

I\’ve learned that the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person. I\’ve learned that when you are in love it shows. I\’ve learned that just one person saying to me \’You\’ve made my day!\’ makes my day. I\’ve learned that having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the world\’s most peaceful feelings. I\’ve learned that being kind is more important than being right. I\’ve learned that no matter how serious your life requires you to be, you always need a friend to act goofy with. I\’ve learned that we should be glad God doesn\’t give us everything we ask for. I\’ve learned that to ignore the facts doesn\’t change the facts. I\’ve learned that when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you. I\’ve learned that love, not time, heals all wounds. I\’ve learned that the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am. I\’ve learned that when you harbor bitterness, happiness will dock else where. I\’ve learned that a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks. I\’ve learned that everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you\’re climbing it. I\’ve learned that the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.

My friend didn\’t write these but given who he is he sure could have. Andy Rooney wrote them. I enjoyed them and I hope you do too.

Go to www.valleyhope.org to learn more.

Ken Gregoire, Ph.D. President/CEO Valley Hope Association
http://www.valleyhope.org

Ken Gregoire, Ph.D. President/CEO Valley Hope Association
http://www.valleyhope.org

Author Bio: Ken Gregoire, Ph.D. President/CEO Valley Hope Association
http://www.valleyhope.org

Category: Wellness, Fitness and Diet
Keywords: alcohol rehab, drug rehab, drug rehab centers, drug rehab center