How to Apply for Joint Accreditation for Interprofessional Continuing Education

Published Date

In this fifth of six videos, the collaborating accreditors discuss the application process and eligibility requirements for Joint Accreditation for Interprofessional Continuing Education. Hear from Kate Regnier, MA, MBA, Executive Vice President of the ACCME, Dimitra Travlos, PharmD, BCPS, Assistant Executive Director & Director, Continuing Pharmacy Education Provider Accreditation of the ACPE, and Kathy Chappell, PhD, RN, Director, Accreditation Program at the ANCC.

Transcript

>>REGNIER: Let's talk just for a minute about the process of seeking Joint Accreditation really starts with an organization coming to that decision after looking at information on our jointaccreditation.org website, talking inside its organization about whether this is right and it actually is doing interprofessional education.

>>CHAPPELL: I think that's important. It really needs to be mission-driven within the organization, not just "it would be convenient if we have one set of standards," but this is really what we want to do as an organization is, continuing education by the team for the team.

>>TRAVLOS: And even if there is an organization that is thinking about it, again, it's a good place to start to get them going on it. But they just, they are probably not eligible yet to come up for Joint Accreditation. But reviewing that information is appropriate in order, whether to get started or to confirm if you're ready to move forward with it.

>>CHAPPELL: Yeah. So I think a gap analysis, using all the tools that are on the Joint Accreditation website, right? So we have what are our criteria, what should CE look like as an interprofessional education activity, the eligibility requirements. We have our intent to apply.

>>REGNIER: Intent to apply.

>>CHAPPELL: We have our expectations from a timeline perspective. We have fees. All of that information is available. And Dimitra, you provide a ton of resources in terms of being available to talk to organizations that might be interested in Joint Accreditation by one-on-one calls or webinars that we've developed or workshops that we've developed that organizations can come to.

>>REGNIER: So, let's say an organization has decided it wants to pursue Joint Accreditation. It's looked at all of our resources. It's had some conversations internally and perhaps with you, Dimitra. It then starts the process by completing an intent to apply. So, can you walk through the process a little bit?

 >>TRAVLOS: Sure. So then we begin with the intent to apply, which is really just a two-page application, where you indicate if you are accredited by any one of us. And again, the requirement is, you don't have to be accredited. But if you are, please indicate it and that will help in regards to providing extensions, if we need to provide extensions for each organization. And then, just a brief description of what is your CE by the team, for the team model. Once you are eligible, then you continue to move to the next steps whereby submission of an activity list, provision of the self-study.

>>TRAVLOS: We evaluate or we schedule an interview call with a set of reviewers, keeping in mind that the reviewers are not really the staff sitting around this table, but we do have external reviewers. So it is a peer process whereby they look at your self-study, can ask you any questions for clarification. And then, from there, an evaluation team report is drafted up where then it goes to our joint accreditation review committee. I don't know if you want to elaborate.

>>CHAPPELL: I think it's important to note that organizations that are applying for Joint Accreditation are evaluated by an interprofessional team. So, that includes a surveyor from nursing, a surveyor from medicine, a surveyor from pharmacy, to evaluate if that organization is actually doing interprofessional continuing education and to learn more about how it's mission-driven within the organization, what their outcomes are, in terms of their interprofessional continuing education program.

>>REGNIER: So, the survey team report from that interprofessional survey team goes then to a body called the Joint Accreditation Review Committee, and that committee is made up of two volunteers from each of our organizations. So again, you see this pattern or this theme of interprofessional collaboration around accreditation playing out. And that survey team report and recommendation really is discussed and reviewed in great detail by that Joint Accreditation Review Committee. Once that committee formulates a recommendation of Joint Accreditation, or not, along with the length of the term, it could be two years for organizations that have never been accredited by any of us. It could be four years or six years for organizations that have been accredited before. That recommendation then goes to each of our three governing bodies. In the case of ACCME, it's our Board of Directors.

>>CHAPPELL: And in case of nursing, it's the Commission on Accreditation makes the decision.

>>TRAVLOS: And for ACPE, we have our own Board of Directors, and it's just based on our bylaws. That's why we have to do that process of taking it back to our own organization. And then thereafter, you hear of the result.

>>CHAPPELL: Each of government bodies makes an independent decision, and then collectively, the organization – the decision about whether the organization has met our Criteria.

>>REGNIER: And we've agreed that there will be one decision.

>>CHAPPELL: Correct.

>>TRAVLOS: Correct.

>>REGNIER: It has to adopted or ratified by each of our governing boards, but it's one decision of Joint Accreditation. And if, for some reason, and it hasn't happened, there was some disagreement amongst the governing bodies, we would take it back to the Joint Accreditation Review Committee to explore what the disagreement was.

>>CHAPPELL: Yeah.

>>REGNIER: But it's a single decision.

>>CHAPPELL: And I think we're very proud to say, we have 20 organizations that have successfully achieved Joint Accreditation.

>>TRAVLOS: And the list is growing.

>>CHAPPELL: And the list is growing.

 

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