Preparations are starting for Accreditation Canada site visits happening across VCH in September 2016. We’re asking for your help to take the first step: complete a Self-Assessment of the care we provide.

Self-Assessments are important because they help us evaluate the services we provide against the Accreditation Canada Standards, our guide to support ongoing quality improvement. This snapshot helps us identify areas where we are doing well and where we can improve. Those areas for improvement become our focus in preparations for the site visit in 2016.

Who should complete a Self-Assessment?

Anyone on the interdisciplinary care team, including staff and physicians, can complete a Self-Assessment so they can reflect the voice of the point of care.

Take the survey

Over the next couple weeks, managers and team leaders will receive information on how their team can take part in Self-Assessment.

Once your team’s questionnaire opens, your manager or team lead will let you know how participate, including team login, specific dates and target number of responses.

If you are not able to participate, please let your manager or team leader know as soon as possible.

They’re anonymous

Self-assessments are secure online questionnaires. Responses are rolled up together so that neither individuals nor their answers can be identified. The more open and honest the responses are, the easier it will be for us to identify opportunities for improvement.

Survey length

Most questionnaires take about 30 minutes to complete and will stay open for 3-4 weeks to allow people to participate.

What’s new for Accreditation 2016?

1. We’re in it together. All of VCH is participating together for the first time and will continue to do so every four years so we can focus on common priorities across VCH. We’ll be “thinking globally and acting locally.”
2. Updated standards – Last month, Accreditation Canada released updates to standards for all programs and services preparing for site visit surveys in 2016. Enhanced content includes patient and family-centred care as the foundation for everything we do. Check out the new standards and Required Organizational Practices on VCH-Connect.

Isn’t Accreditation already happening in the Coastal Community of care?

Yes, acute sites in Coastal are preparing for an Accreditation site visit in June 2015. This is a bridging visit that allows us to transition to VCH-wide Accreditation in 2016. These Coastal acute sites will also be included in the September 2016 site visit, but they will not need to repeat Self-Assessments, and can continue to focus on the improvement work already underway for their June 2015 site visit.

Learn more

Accreditation is a powerful learning tool for ongoing quality improvement, and a great opportunity to showcase the excellence of our staff, physicians and volunteers. To find out more about how Self-Assessment works and why your voice is important, check out Accreditation on VCH Connect and these Frequently Asked Questions.

Contact us

Serena Bertoli-Haley, VCH Accreditation and Patient Satisfaction Leader email: Serena.Bertoli-Haley@vch.ca