Accreditation
ASTHO supports state and
territorial health agencies who seek voluntary national accreditation from the
Public
Health Accreditation Board (PHAB). ASTHO is committed to ensuring that its
members have the technical support needed to become accredited and continuously
improve the performance of their health agencies.
Public health
department accreditation is defined as the development of a set of standards, a
process to measure health department performance against those standards, and
reward or recognition for those health departments who meet the standards.
Organizing and Preparing for Accreditation
Each applicant must also complete three agency-wide processes before
applying for national accreditation: a State Health Assessment, a State Health
Improvement Plan and an Agency Strategic Plan.
All state and territorial health
agencies who apply for accreditation will be evaluated based on documentation
that conforms to the PHAB Standards and Measures. Health Departments who
applied prior to June 2, 2014 will be evaluated based on the PHAB
Standards and Measures Version 1.0 while all health departments that submit
their applications from June 3, 2014 forward will be reviewed under the revised
Standards
and Measures Version 1.5. ASTHO has developed an online Resource Kit to
help states and territories preparing for Accreditation.
ASTHO is collecting some sample
documents for various domains, standards, and measures that other states are
using in their accreditation process. To submit your state's documentation for
this repository, please forward your documentation and a completed Submission
Form to accreditation@astho.org for internal
review and posting.
ASTHO has developed organizational materials and webinars to assist state health agency staff collect and organize documentation and prepare for the accreditation process.
Technical Assistance
ASTHO provides comprehensive technical assistance
(TA) to states and territories on the accreditation process, including (but not
limited to):
- Accreditation Readiness Workshops
- Documentation Review
- Pre-Requisite Development and Analysis
- Health Assessment and Improvement Planning
- Accreditation
Road-mapping
- Agency and Leadership Engagement
- Accreditation
Coordinator Peer Network
Accreditation Coordinators Learning Community
Connecting with colleagues and sharing best practices is an important
component to advancing state capacity to successfully apply for PHAB
accreditation. ASTHO has established an Accreditation Coordinator Learning
Community (ACLC) to cultivate a community where state health agency
accreditation coordinators can enhance their knowledge of the PHAB
Accreditation process. This group serves as a peer network where members
exchange accreditation related resources and engage with colleagues in other
state health agencies for the purposes of successfully serving as an
accreditation coordinator and leading an accreditation application process.
For more information about the ACLC please email the Accreditation team.
Please note that
while ASTHO provides resources and technical assistance, the final decisions
about any particular documentation or accreditation status reside with PHAB.
ASTHO recommends these tools be used in conjunction with PHAB's tools and
resources, and always consult the Standards
and Measures before submitting any documentation.