Posted by : Moraliss Thursday, January 22, 2015

By Janine Hughes


Every new of the freestanding hyperbaric clinic has one primary goal; this is to be Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS) accredited. It is not very easy as it requires heavy investment in quality medical equipment and quality staff. However, it has benefits that can completely transform the future of the hospital, putting it in a new level of playing field. It is the way to attract referrals from medical practitioners and to assure the regulators and the insurers that you meet the highest standards in the health care practice. The UHMS accreditation is not imposed on any medical facility, it is a voluntary program that offers a guarantee to other parties that the hyperbaric oxygen therapy provided in the clinic meets the rigorous industry standards, the clinic practice evidence based medicine, and that the facility provides high patient satisfaction with high ratings.

By definition, the accreditation is simply to ascertain that the hyperbaric oxygen therapy that the clinic offers if of industry standards. It also means that this clinic scores highly in patient satisfaction rate and practices evidence based medicine. This however does not come easy. There are stringent requirements set by the body that the facility has to meet to be accredited.

As such, a facility that intends to be accredited by this body should first start by assessing the extent to which its current facilities, staff, procedures, and practices conforms to standards set for the accreditation. The facility can seek help from consultants to help them conform to these requirements.

Since the standards are so high, it is often advisable that the medical facility seeks services from expert consults to assess the extent to which their current establishment and procedures conform to the said standards. The consultants should offer insight in regards to scope, the resources, and time required for conformity. The consultant should also offer assistance in helping the facility conform by steering the processes required by the institution.

Ideally, there are a number of benefits that come from using a third party to guide the facility before the UHMS team come for the survey. They give a detailed report with the guideline of what should be done and when. This detailed interrelationship between the tasks to be completed and the resources necessary for the same ensures that the clinic is able to meet the standards on the right time without wastage of resources. In some instances, the consultants also help in the actual performance of some of the tasks.

The specific areas to be surveyed include general administration, the operations, construction, and facility maintenance. The chamber is also inspected on the basis of fabrication, ventilation, fire protection, and electrical system. For patients, the issues like patients' rights, assessment, care, and education are also considered. The other areas are medical staff, the human resources, infection control, medical gas system, clinical research, teaching and publication, leadership, information management, professional improvement, and the environmental care.

Once also the areas meet the set standards, a facility attains the accreditation, which is a proof that the facility conforms to the high standards required in the medical environment. It also a proof that the team running the said medical center is qualified and the health care providers have the necessary training and professional qualification.

The data gathered is then analyzed and if the clinic meets the standards, it gets accredited and can start enjoying the benefits that comes with it. The immediate benefits include the trust earned from insurance providers and increase number patients resulting from referral from physicians and practitioners. In the long run though, this translates to increased income and growth.




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