From the January/February 2011 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
This AO takes about 12 to 16 weeks to process the application. Like ACR, IAC offers an online application, a virtually paperless process. “Following a comprehensive in-house evaluation for completeness, each submitted application is assigned to two clinical reviewers,” an IAC spokeswoman told DOTmed News. “The IAC evaluation process itself is one of peer review conducted by trained reviewers, active in their respective fields and employed with accredited facilities.”
The IAC charges per modality with an initial fee for the primary unit. For example, the initial cost of the first CT unit is a $2,400 base fee, plus $400 per additional testing area. Each additional unit is $1,200. IAC charges one application fee for nuclear medicine, nuclear cardiology and PET facilities, regardless of the number of cameras. MRI and CT facilities with more than one unit qualify for discounts.
The IAC also encourages providers to tout their accreditation status with available tools such as accreditation certificates, plaques and seals.
For more details, visit http://www.intersocietal.org/intersocietal.htm
The Joint Commission
The Joint Commission takes an organization approach to accreditation. Under TJC’s model, facilities undergo a minimum two-day on-site evaluation. When providers apply, they select a date when they expect to be ready for the survey, about three to six months from the time of the application. The survey is patient-centered and is carried out by ambulatory professionals, including a physician surveyor and an ADI specialist with modality expertise.
This AO’s standards focus on “the qualifications of medical personnel and medical directors, the performance specifications for imaging equipment and quality assurance and quality control programs to ensure the safety, reliability, clarity and accuracy of diagnostic imaging,” a TJC spokesman told DOTmed News.
The price of the survey is based on patient volume and number of provider sites (potential applicants can use a calculator on TJC’s website to figure out the cost of the process).
At the end of its survey, TJC leaves a preliminary, written report onsite. The Joint Commission encourages facilities interested in ADI accreditation to apply by July 2011 to ensure the survey is conducted and a decision is rendered by the 2012 deadline.
For more details, visit http://www.jointcommission.org/
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