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(MINOT, ND) – The Joint Commission (TJC) announced it has renewed accreditation for Trinity Health and its network of services, awarding Trinity the Gold Seal of Approval® for demonstrating a commitment to safe and effective patient care.

Accreditation followed a rigorous onsite survey in June, in which a team of eleven experts spent several days evaluating Trinity’s compliance with standards related to emergency management, environment of care, infection prevention and control, leadership, and medication management.

‘I congratulate our medical staff and employees for this milestone,’ said Trinity Health President and CEO John M. Kutch. ‘Accreditation by The Joint Commission is an important achievement for any organization, but it’s taken on more significance recently with the implementation of unannounced surveys and new methods of evaluation that put a health system to the test. We were able to show that not only do we know the standards, we’ve incorporated them into our everyday practices in a way that puts the safety and care of patients at the center of all we do.’

Specific services renewed for accreditation were Trinity Hospitals, the Physician Network Organization and related services, Home Health/Hospice, Behavioral Health Services, and Keycare Medical. The survey team also singled out several programs as best practices, including the use of LEAN processes to improve quality, Trinity’s Care Enhancement Team, the Pharmacy’s use of barcoding and other systems to promote medication safety, and programs for recognizing nurses and nursing assistants.

‘I’m very proud of our staff; they really did shine,’ said Danaka Walz, Director of Clinical Excellence and Patient Safety. ‘Their engagement and cooperation made an impression. At the end of the survey the lead surveyor said she was impressed at how engaged staff were during the survey.’

‘The real root of TJC accreditation is patient safety and quality of care,’ Amy Swearson, Regulatory Standards Coordinator, added. ‘You can prepare and know the standards, but knowing the standards isn’t enough. You need to build them into your culture. I think we were able to show the extent to which we’ve built a culture of quality and safety at Trinity Health.’

Founded in 1951, The Joint Commission is the nation’s oldest and largest healthcare accrediting body, certifying more than 21,000 organizations worldwide. It’s been the driving force behind the move toward continuous quality improvement in healthcare through its program of developing standards that are informed by scientific literature and expert consensus, and then helping hospitals measure, assess and improve their performance.