National Safety and Quality Primary and Community Healthcare Standards

IHCA Certification is committed to working closely with Primary and Community Healthcare Providers in planning their assessment and achieving accreditation.

The National Safety and Quality Primary and Community Healthcare Standards (NSQPHCS) accreditation cycle can vary depending on the model of assessment chosen. A service provider may choose their own pathway, unless otherwise specified by a regulator.

The different models of assessment pathway are:

Stage 1: Desktop assessment

- Two-year accreditation cycle
- May only be used for two assessment cycles

Stage 2: Desktop assessment plus remote (virtual) observations and interviews

- Three-year accreditation cycle

Stage 3: Desktop assessment plus an onsite visit for observation and interviews

- Three-year accreditation cycle

Stage 4: Short-notice desktop assessment plus an onsite visit (regulator stipulated)

- Three-year accreditation cycle

ACCREDITATION ASSESSMENT PROCESS

The Stage 1 model is a desktop review of your safety and quality documentary evidence.

Stages 2, 3 and 4 involve an initial desktop review followed by either a virtual or onsite assessment.

The assessment process involves observation of your workplace and practices and interviews with your governing body, staff, patients and consumers.

The virtual or onsite assessment will commence with an entry meeting with the person in charge or their delegate. The assessment team will provide information regarding the conduct, length and scope of the assessment. The assessment must align to the PICMoRS (process, improvement, consumer participation, monitoring, reporting and systems) assessment methodology.

At the conclusion of the assessment, the findings will be presented to your organisation’s management and other interested parties in relation to conformity with the Standard’s requirements.

Follow up actions

At the conclusion of the assessment, the Lead Assessor will explain what follow-up action is required to remediate any actions that are found to be ‘not met’ during the assessment. You will have a remediation period of 60 business days to resolve these.

Actions that were not met or met with recommendations during the accreditation assessment will need to be assessed during a Final Assessment within 65 business days of the initial (virtual or onsite) assessment.

Formal accreditation decision and award of certificate

IHCA Certification will provide a written report to your organisation and confirm that your organisation has met the requirements of the Standards.

Your organisation will be awarded a Certificate of Accreditation confirming your organisation’s conformance to the standards, together with the right to use IHCA Certification’s distinctive symbol in promotional activities. The outcomes of your assessment are provided to the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) and will be registered on the Commission’s website.

Providers are to continue their monitoring and quality improvement processes over the two- or three-year cycle.

Other Standards

Do you require information about other quality standards to support the continuous improvement of your organisation? Please contact our friendly team today on (07) 3844 2222 or certification@ihcac.com.au.

More Information

For more information about the Primary and Community Healthcare Standards, please visit the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare website.