title: Developing a strategy for accreditation of clinical services.
abstract: Accreditation is one method of assuring quality. Accreditation requires the setting of standards and the creation of a robust and reliable process for assessing them. Accreditation offers different advantages to different groups, eg quality assurance to commissioners and the boards of provider organisations, confidence and choice for patients, and a quality improvement pathway for services to follow. This paper is focused on service accreditation and it proposes that service accreditation be professionally led.
authors.affiliation: Royal College of Physicians of London, UK.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Valori
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rogers
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ingham
mesh_terms: D000068:Accreditation / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006761:Hospitals / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D016730:Program Development / Q000379:methods*; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D058996:Quality Improvement / Q000458:organization & administration*
keywords: Accreditation; peer review; quality assurance; quality improvement; self-assessment