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The Process Of UHMS Accreditation And Its Benefits

By Janine Hughes


The primary goal for the freestanding hyperbaric clinic should be to attain the Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS) accreditation. This is for obvious reasons; it is the way to stay in business for long. It assures other players that services offered by the facility are beyond reproach. Although it requires heavy investment to attain quality in all aspects, the benefits that follow are immense. The referrals from physicians and other medical practitioners increase while the medical insurers trust the institution with their clients are willing to reimburse any expenses without too much negotiation. Normally, the UHMS accreditation is voluntary; however, the process of attaining it is rigorous.

The accreditation processes is not very easy; the facilities have to meet stringent standards set by the body, and provide data to prove their conformity with the set requirements. The data to be provided focuses on policies and procedure, hyperbaric medicine quality offered, and patient safety and outcomes.

In order to ascertain this, the health care facility has to be surveyed by a team from the UHMS. In addition to above data, they have to gather data on training processes, the equipment operation and maintenance, and the safety standards in place.

For one reason or another, many clinics usually resort to seek help from professional consultants to be ready for the survey. Generally, the terms of reference mainly focuses on evaluating the clinic's current position and the level of conformity and nonconformity. These consultants offer insight in scope, the time, and the resources necessary for full conformity. However, they may extend their services to include steering the clinic in the process of conformity.

A third party consultant also comes with several other benefits. The consultant comes up with a detailed report stating the tasks and timing for the same. In addition to this, the report gives the relationship between one task to the other, and which should come first and second. As such, a clear picture of what is to be done, and the resources required for the same are clear for the party. The consultant may also offer assistance in performing 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.

For human resources, the data in regards to professional development, qualification, training, leadership and the numbers are considered. Other areas include research and development, teaching, publication, information management, and environmental sustainability.

This in essence means more referrals to the facility as physicians are confident with the quality of health provision from this institution. The insurers will also be willing to reimburse the clinic that is accredited and more qualified health providers get attracted by the hospital. It translates to higher income.




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