Joint Commission Behavioral Health Update
April 2015
In This Issue:

Greetings to Our Colleagues in Behavioral Healthcare!

This month we are marking the six-year anniversary of our newsletter! We have found it to be a great vehicle for staying in touch with our clients and colleagues. It's gratifying when we get feedback about how helpful the newsletter is to folks out there in the field. So, keep your questions and comments coming and we'll continue to bring you information and resources that support your survey readiness efforts. Also, remember that you can access previous editions of our newsletter via the Newsletter Archive 

on our website. 

 

This month, our first article provides an inside look at how a suicide prevention tracer was conducted on a recent survey. Our second article provides information on some resources and updates recently published by TJC which may be helpful for you.

 

We value your feedback on the newsletter. Please email us your comments, and tell us what topics you would like to see in future issues. We look forward to hearing from you!  Also, feel free to forward this newsletter to your colleagues.

 

Regards,

Anne Barrins

President/CEO

Are you ready for the Life Safety and EOC Review on your next TJC survey?

 

These two areas now account for eight of the Top 10 findings for hospitals.  

 

Contact us now to schedule a mock Life Safety/EOC survey by our engineer associate. It's the best way to ensure you're fully prepared for when that TJC engineer surveyor arrives!

 

877-546-7206
NEW CLIENTS!
Barrins & Associates is pleased to welcome four new clients this month: Simple Recovery located in Huntington Beach, Calif., Casa Recovery Residential Treatment Program in San Juan Capistrano, Calif., Challenges Addiction Treatment Center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Bx Healthcare Systems in Atlanta, Ga.

All of these organizations are pursuing initial Joint Commission accreditation. We are very pleased to be partnering with them to achieve that goal!
Why Choose
Barrins & Associates?
"We've worked with Barrins & Associates for seven years. Follow their lead and you will not only achieve Joint Commission accreditation but improve practice as well." 

Ken Berrick
Chief Executive Officer
Seneca Family of Agencies, Oakland, CA  
A Closer Look
For a few years now, TJC surveyors have been conducting suicide prevention tracers when applicable to the setting they are surveying. This is known as a "program specific tracer." We recently had a client participate in this type of tracer during their survey. We spoke with the staff about their experience and thought it would be helpful to share their impressions. The setting was a psychiatric hospital. Continue reading for feedback from the survey coordinator ...
TJC Resources and Updates 
Top Standards Compliance Data for 2014
The April issue of TJC Perspectives has the Top 10 compliance issues for all programs including hospitals and behavioral health organizations. For hospitals, once again, the majority of findings are in the Life Safety and Environment of Care chapters. For behavioral health organizations, the list is also similar to past years. Treatment planning tops the list once again. Suicide risk assessment is #3 and there are three Human Resource requirements that made the list. Continue reading ...
Quick Safety Article: Preventing Copy-and-Paste Errors in EHRs
TJC publishes Quick Safety. It's a brief informational posting on patient safety issues. March's issue has an article that's relevant as many organizations transition to an electronic health record. The topic is the practice of "copying and pasting" in EHRs. View this issue for full details ...
NEWSLETTER for Chief Medical Officers
TJC publishes a monthly e-newsletter titled Physician Leader Monthly. The target audience is Chief Medical Officers, and the topics are geared toward physician leaders. So, check it out and see if it might be a good resource for your CMO. To subscribe, go to the TJC homepage and click on "Sign Up for News and Alerts" under the Action Center. Under Blogs, select "JC Physician Blog."
Looking for a way to show your staff what to expect during a TJC tracer?
Check out the video on the TJC website that shows a mock tracer at a community mental health center.
Barrins & Associates provides Joint Commission and CMS consulting services for the Behavioral Healthcare industry. Our clients include psychiatric hospitals and freestanding Behavioral Healthcare organizations. We specialize in providing Survey Preparation and Continuous Survey Readiness services for the Behavioral Healthcare industry. Barrins & Associates was founded by Anne Barrins who was a Joint Commission surveyor for 13 years.

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