WILTON, Conn., Aug. 19 /PRNewswire/ — Onward Healthcare
(http://www.onwardhealthcare.com) is pleased to announce that it has earned
recertification for the Gold Seal of Approval(TM) for healthcare staffing
services by The Joint Commission. The Gold Seal acknowledges compliance with
The Joint Commission’s national set of consensus-based quality standards and
demonstrates a commitment to excellence in providing healthcare staffing.
Over the past decade, the ongoing shortages of nurses and allied health
care professionals have forced healthcare organizations to increasingly fill
positions with temporary workers through contractual arrangements with travel
nursing and related staffing firms. The Joint Commission’s certification
program, launched in October 2004, offers an independent, comprehensive
evaluation of a staffing firm’s abilities to provide competent staffing
services.
The Joint Commission recently completed an unannounced, on-site review of
Onward Healthcare and its compliance with their organization and quality
management standards. These standards address how a healthcare staffing firm
determines the qualifications and competencies of their staff, recruits and
retains healthcare professionals, enacts emergency management procedures, and
supports their healthcare clients by managing a comprehensive quality
management process.
“The Joint Commission’s external review of our operations validates our
ongoing commitment to our clients, as well as our thousands of healthcare
professionals across the country,” stated Kevin Clark, CEO and founder of
Onward Healthcare. “The Gold Seal demonstrates our commitment to the highest
standards of patient care, which we have achieved through innovative practice
changes designed to raise the bar in our industry.”
In 2005, Onward Healthcare was one of the first companies to receive full
certification by The Joint Commission for its travel nursing, local nursing,
and allied health staffing services. In addition to the renewed recognition
for its travel and local nursing and allied services, Onward has also received
certification for its clinical research services (CRS) division which launched
in November of 2007. Organizations in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology,
medical device, and related clinical research industries can now be assured
the same high caliber of professionals when looking to Onward for their
staffing needs.
“Healthcare organizations that contract with Onward Healthcare can look to
this certification as an assurance that their entire organization demonstrates
a commitment to providing and continuously improving quality services,” says
Michele Sacco, M.S., executive director, Health Care Staffing Services
Certification, Joint Commission.
The Joint Commission’s review process focuses on an organization’s ability
to provide competent staffing services and evaluates performance, continuing
education and training, placement criteria, and other areas. Furthermore,
they look for excellence in the areas of leadership, human resources
management, performance measurement and improvement, and information
management.
About Onward Healthcare
Onward Healthcare (http://www.onwardhealthcare.com/company/about.aspx) is
a leading provider of integrated travel and local per diem staffing for
registered nurses, allied health professionals, clinical research
professionals, international candidates and vendor managed services for large
health systems. Onward currently staffs clients in all 50 states including
hospitals, outpatient clinics, magnet facilities, government facilities,
schools, and long-tem care facilities. Founded in 2002, Onward Healthcare is
headquartered in Wilton, CT with local staffing offices in Encinitas, CA,
Burlington, MA, Crofton, MD, Cherry Hill, NJ, Livingston, NJ, Melville, NY,
and Wexford, PA.
About The Joint Commission
Founded in 1951, The Joint Commission seeks to continuously improve the
safety and quality of care provided to the public through the provision of
health care accreditation and related services that support performance
improvement in health care organizations. The Joint Commission evaluates and
accredits more than 15,000 health care organizations and programs in the
United States, including more than 8,000 hospitals and home care
organizations, and more than 6,800 other health care organizations that
provide long term care, assisted living, behavioral health care, laboratory
and ambulatory care services. The Joint Commission also accredits health
plans, integrated delivery networks, and other managed care entities. In
addition, The Joint Commission provides certification of disease-specific care
programs, primary stroke centers, and health care staffing services. An
independent, not-for-profit organization, the Joint Commission is the nation’s
oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.
Learn more about The Joint Commission at www.jointcommission.org.
SOURCE Onward Healthcare