Accrediting agencies are responsible for ensuring the safety of patients who choose to endure weight loss surgery. They test surgeons and medical professionals on important factors affecting an operation to determine whether or not they can competently perform these tasks safely and securely. When deciding on a surgeon, be sure to ask them of their accreditations before committing to surgery with this facility or doctor.
Accreditation is the voluntary choice of quality assurance for an individual, group or service. It is used to distinguish those that apply a high set of educational standards to their work. The process is a set of rigorous protocols that evaluate effectiveness; it also looks at how well all the parts work together (in the case of a facility) to meet the needs of patients.
JCI
The Joint International Committee sets forth standards that help to provide necessary measures to improve both the safety and quality of patient treatment in all clinical centers. These actions hope to continuously show high-performance improvements in patients. These standards are used in public and private hospitals, outpatient clinics and medical and psychiatric hospitals.
Created in 1994, JCI has a presence in early 90 countries as of 2014. They work as a consistent factor in quality improvement worldwide. Their mission is to provide the best standards of patient care in a results-driven process that continuously improves over time.
Center of Excellence
A Center of Excellence is a facility, whether a hospital or outpatient clinic, that works with a network of institutions to ensure excellence in a particular area of medicine. These centers are readily available and sufficient for those looking for expertise in a certain specialty, in this case, bariatric surgery. One’s insurance company can point them in the right direction of a center like this local to their area.
CSG
For those looking to travel to Mexico for weight loss surgery, the CSG Accreditation is important. This program covers hospitals, outpatient units, rehabilitation centers, psychiatric units and other healthcare centers. This accreditation is given to facilities by the General Health Council of Mexico, which is a part of the Mexican Ministry of Health. Created in 1999, their standards focus on improving the quality of care and patient safety.
They also encourage these accredited centers to maintain their position in the health care market by consistently providing high-quality healthcare for each and every patient. They believe that every part of the patient process, whether pre-testing, consultations or pre-surgery appointments are just as important as the surgery and post-op measures. They think that by tracking patients early, they can better serve them and their goals for their overall health.
COE
The Council on Occupational Education focuses on ensuring that individuals have the skills needed to perform their job successfully. Created in 1971, the organization fast became a regional accrediting association that served 11 different states. Their mission is to offer the general public assurance that accredited institutions can provide quality care and instruction for various careers. This comes into play with weight loss surgery when patients are searching for a surgeon. Inquire, whether their schooling came from a COE, accredited place as they have higher standards for learning.
SOE
Standards of Excellence accreditation focuses on proven compliance to various standards of excellence in your field. To be accredited, peers from the member’s field review their success rates and background to determine if they should receive this accreditation. It is somewhat of a check and balances process that makes one accountable for their skills and their continued success in bariatric surgery.
Other Accreditations Include:
