Joint Commission Behavioral Health Update
September 2016
In This Issue:

Greetings to Our Colleagues in Behavioral Healthcare!
Now that summer vacations are over, most organizations are returning to their routine flow of business, including Joint Commission readiness efforts. To support you in that, we are providing information on two topics of interest related to TJC surveys. 

Our first article covers the new requirement for psychiatric hospitals related to medication ordering policies and the issue of therapeutic duplication. Our second article provides some guidance for behavioral health organizations on complying with the TJC requirements for an influenza vaccination program.
 
We look forward to seeing many of you at the annual TJC Behavioral Health Care Conference on October 18 and 19 in Rosemont, Illinois. Please let us know if you will be attending and we will be sure to connect and catch up! 

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.

Best regards and enjoy the fall season in your part of the country!    

Anne Barrins
President/CEO
Prepared for Your Next TJC Deemed Status Survey?
 
Does your psychiatric hospital use TJC for deemed status? If so, prepare for a strong CMS focus on your next survey. Contact us now to schedule a mock survey that covers both TJC and CMS requirements including the most currently challenging standards.
 
1-877-546-7206
Tip of the Month
If you're preparing for a TJC survey, be sure to use the recently updated Survey Activity Guide with changes effective August 1, 2016. See the What's New page for a quick summary of the changes.
Why Choose
Barrins & Associates?
"We just received our TJC accreditation in record time - one of our organization's greatest accomplishments! We owe a large part of this achievement to Barrins & Associates. Our consultant was the perfect fit for our organization. I cannot thank you enough for your expertise and outstanding consultation!

Cory Cooper, COO
Steps to Recovery
Levittown, PA
Psychiatric Hospitals
UPDATE ON Medication Ordering and Therapeutic Duplication 
Effective August 1, 2016, TJC added three additional policies to the list of documents required for hospitals on the first day of survey. These have been added to the Hospital Accreditation Program Document List in the updated Survey Activity Guide and include medication management policy, abuse and neglect policy for inpatient and ambulatory sites and fall risk assessment and policy.
Continue Reading >
BH Organizations
Influenza Vaccination: AN Important Compliance Issue
The TJC requirements for behavioral health organizations to implement influenza vaccination programs went into effect in 2012 and were expanded in 2013. Most BH organizations now have a process for offering influenza vaccination and educating staff about the importance of the vaccine. However, some BH organizations still struggle with meeting all of the TJC requirements in this area and this standard (IC.02.04.01) has now made its way into the Top Five findings for BH organizations for the first half of 2016.
Continue Reading >
NEW CLIENTS
Barrins & Associates is pleased to welcome four new clients:
Potomac Pathways in Cabin John, Maryland; The Foundry Treatment Center in Steamboat Springs, Colorado; River Point Behavioral Health in Jacksonville, Florida; and Monarch which is headquartered in Albemarle, North Carolina. We are pleased to be working with these organizations on regulatory and accreditation compliance. 
Congratulations corner!
Congratulations to our clients who recently achieved initial Joint Commission accreditation: Steps to Recovery in Levittown, Pennsylvania; The Teen Project in Rancho Santa Margarita, California; and Renaissance Ranch Outpatient Treatment in Salt Lake City, Utah.
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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