Joint Commission Behavioral Health Update
March 2016
In This Issue:

Greetings to Our Colleagues in Behavioral Healthcare!
It was great to catch up with so many of you at the annual meeting of the National Association for Psychiatric Health Systems in Washington, DC this month! Barrins & Associates was a Bronze Sponsor for the event. The agenda was chock-full of eminent speakers and the most up-to-date information on issues impacting the Behavioral Healthcare industry. Many of our clients are NAPHS members. For those that are not, we encourage you to consider joining the association. Check out the NAPHS website. There's a wealth of information on pertinent topics for behavioral health providers.  
 
In this month's newsletter, we are providing important information on upcoming changes to the TJC survey process for psychiatric hospitals. In addition, there are updates on survey scheduling, survey teams and the new Sentinel Event Alert on suicide risk assessment. 

We value your feedback on the newsletter. Please send 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 to your colleagues.  

Regards,
Anne Barrins
President/CEO
Prepared for Closer Scrutiny of CMS B Tags?

If you're a psychiatric hospital using TJC for deemed status, be prepared for closer scrutiny of B Tag requirements during your next survey. Contact us now to schedule our educational session on this timely topic.

1-877-546-7206
Tip of the Month
If you are a BH organization preparing for survey and trying to figure out how your buildings will be surveyed, check out this TJC guideline about the Life Safety chapter.

It outlines how buildings are classified and which requirements of the Life Safety Code apply in various settings. 
Why Choose
Barrins & Associates?
"Our Barrins & Associates consultant had great insight into what TJC surveyors are focusing on and how we should prepare for that. Our mock survey was challenging and undeniably prepared us not only for the TJC survey but also a refinement of our current processes. I am very grateful."

Brian Kovacs
Senior Director of Operations
Bancroft Rehabilitation Services
Cherry Hill, New Jersey
TJC Accreditation Process
Changes for Psychiatric Hospitals
If you are a psychiatric hospital that uses TJC accreditation for deemed status, you probably received an email communication recently from TJC entitled "Important Update on The Joint Commission Accreditation Process for Psychiatric Hospitals." This notification discusses some significant changes to survey reports, scoring, and the post-survey process for psychiatric hospitals. These changes were discussed at the Consultants Forum we recently attended at TJC and are now being communicated officially to the field. This article includes a summary of the key changes that go into effect June 6, 2016.
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TJC Topics of InteresT
important updates
The scheduling of surveys and composition of survey teams are always topics of interest to our clients, so here are some updates in those areas. Also, be aware of the new Sentinel Event Alert on suicide risk assessment and treatment. 
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NEW CLIENTS!
Barrins & Associates is pleased to welcome three new clients: Beachside Recovery is located in Newport Beach, California, Behavioral Health Partners of Frederick in Frederick County, Maryland, and Renaissance Ranch Outpatient Treatment in Salt Lake City, Utah. We are pleased to be working with these organizations on Joint Commission readiness!
Congratulations Corner
Congratulations to our clients Akua Mind & Body in Orange County, California; Bluff Plantation in Augusta, Georgia;  and Positive Sobriety Institute in Chicago, Illinois who recently achieved initial Joint Commission accreditation!
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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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