Q&A on Accreditation
1) When did Gateway receive its last Accreditation and how did we do?
2) When will we next be accredited?
3) Who decided to make service providers become accredited?
4) What does being accredited mean?
5) Where do CARF standards come from?
6) What do CARF standards focus on?
7) How often do we become accredited? And how often do the standards change?
8) What CARF standards do we fall under?
9) How, exactly, does the survey process work?
10) What is the difference in these standards?
11) What process will be used for the individual program standards?
12) How long does the survey process last?
13) What is our attitude to CARF Accreditation?
14) What standards will we be measured on?
15) What policies and/or procedures did we create or revise to demonstrate compliance to 2007 standards?
16) How is Gateway integrating the new ASPIRE to EXCELLENCETM concept into its current policies, plans and approaches?
17) What is ASPIRE?
18) What are S.M.A.R.T. goals?
19) What are Performance Evidence Indicators?
20) What are the Key Concepts in Understanding the CARF Standards?
1) When did Gateway receive its last Accreditation and how did we do?
May 2005 and we did well! A three year accreditation with no recommendations.
2) When will we next be accredited?
April 23 - 25, 2008.
3) Who decided to make service providers become accredited?
The government of British Columbia decided several years ago that all service providers in the province who delivered contracts in the amount of $500,000.00 or more must be accredited. It established September 2006 as the date by which service providers had to be accredited to stay in business. This is government’s accountability measure to ensure the service providers they fund meet high service delivery standards. Gateway’s funders are CLBC primarily, and to a small extent MCFD.
4) What does being accredited mean?
Being accredited means that an agency has met or is in conformance with international standards of practice.
5) Where do CARF standards come from?
CARF stands for Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitative Services. It is an internationally known and recognized accrediting body. CARF has defined international standards of practice that are developed by impartial consumers, stakeholders, professionals, provincial and national organizations.
6) What do CARF standards focus on?
Quality and Accountability.
7) How often do we become accredited? And how often do the standards change?
We seek three year accreditations. CARF also gives a year one year accreditation. The three year accreditation is the maximum length that CARF gives and this is what we seek to achieve again in our second survey. CARF standards are re-issued every year and they become more integrated, holistic and challenging each year. This is a good thing. This means that during the three years in between the site survey agencies must continuously refine their practices and stay current with the standards as they change.
8) What CARF standards do we fall under?
We fall under Employment and Community Services Standards and specifically we will be surveyed in Child and Youth (BSS North & Lower Mainland, Treatment Centre); Community Housing (Georgia House; Chestnut House; North Delta House); Host Families (Family Care Homes) and Community Integration will include all day programs (Crossroads; Georgia House; North Delta Life Skills).
9) How, exactly, does the survey process work?
A team of Surveyors (3-5 people) will come to Gateway to see if we are in conformance with community social service industry standards. They will compare Gateway’s actual performance to industry standards. The surveyors are highly skilled professionals – they are third party examiners. They will examine two types of standards – generic professional standards and program specific standards.
10) What is the difference in these standards?
The generic standards relate to the overall business and organization of the agency. The surveyors will examine policies, reports, minutes, plans, notes, reports, will conduct interviews of Board members, staff, families, funders and persons served. The business and organization standards will look at Governance; Leadership, Legal and Ethical Functioning; Occupational Health and Safety practices; Financial functioning and planning; Identification of Risks and Management of Risks; and persons served.
11) What process will be used for the individual program standards?
A specific section of the standards in each program will be specifically examined in each program. These specific program standards look at each program in our agency and examines them from the point of view of how Persons are Served including the Individualization, the Rights of Persons Served, Service Planning, Service Design and Delivery.
12) How long does the survey process last?
Surveyors begin the process in the months prior to the site visit before they come. They look at our Program Overview information, most recent AGM report, policies and procedures; they may visit our website; and invite comments to CARF about Gateway before hand and during the process. Gateway submits the name of funders to be interviewed and organizes the families and clients who want to be interviewed. The surveyors are with us for several days and do site specific visits – including Prince George.
At the end of the survey an exit survey is held in which the lead surveyor goes through the standards and gives a verbal summary to the Gateway team. Gateway will not be told the survey results at this time but will know the specific recommendations that will be included.
13) What is our attitude to CARF Accreditation?
Gateway Society is fully committed to the process of examination and evaluation by such a prestigious accrediting body. Our mission is to serve our families, our children, and adults to the best of our ability. Continuous quality improvement involves the humility to look at our strengths and weaknesses and make improvements. Input from our stakeholders is the key to the organization’s growth and conformance to the standards that govern the Society’s entire operation.
Gateway Society exists to serve persons with Autism, their families and community. Accreditation; meeting licensing standards; fulfilling the objectives of our contracts; getting strategic input; and fulfilling our ethical and legal obligations are all part of the service and rights of the persons we serve.
Gateway Society welcomes enthusiastically this quality and accountability process.
14) What standards will we be measured on?
We will be surveyed on the 2007 standards.
15) What policies and/or procedures did we create or revise to demonstrate compliance to 2007 standards?
We enhanced the following:
- Our Medication Policy;
- Our OH&S Policies and Manual;
- Our Board members looked at the voluntary governance standards, and while we are not being surveyed on these, the Board reviewed our Society bylaws; revised and upgraded policies related to its own committee structure; did a self-examination; organized its strategic planning process and revised its Strategic Plan – including its General Plan, Business Plan and action reporting; our Risk Management Policy 8.15 was expanded to ever higher accountability in risk analysis, risk management and reporting. The new Policy 9.15 was developed to reflect the new CARF standards related to Business organization, performance reporting.
A highly successful strategic planning process occurred in the fall of 2007, which involved both Lower Mainland and Northern teams.
16) How is Gateway integrating the new ASPIRE to EXCELLENCETM concept into its current policies, plans and approaches?
The new ASPIRE to EXCELLENCETM model will be part of the 2008 Standards but Gateway is already demonstrating conformance to these new business standards.
17) What is ASPIRE?
A – Assess
S – Set Strategy
P – Persons Served – Input from Stakeholders
I – Implement the Plan
R – Review Results
E – Effect Change
18) What are S.M.A.R.T. goals?
S.M.A.R.T goals are:
S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Achievable
R – Realistic
T – Timebased
Gateway has already taken its integrated Strategic Plan and aligned it with ASPIRE to EXCELLENCETM, so it is in conformance. Policies have been upgraded; plans revised and improved; procedures improved to demonstrate conformance.
19) What are Performance Evidence Indicators?
They are:
- Documents such as Reports, Survey Summaries, Notes, Policies and Plans;
- Meeting Minutes; and
- Interviews
20) What are the Key Concepts in Understanding the CARF Standards?
They Are:
- Rights of Persons Served;
- Input from Persons Served and Stakeholders;
- Service Delivery that meets industry standards and demonstrates conformance;
- Integrated Strategic Planning;
- Leadership;
- Governance;
- Corporate Responsibility.
For more information, please contact us. |
