TJC and CMS News for the Behavioral Healthcare Industry
July/August 2020
In This Issue:
Greetings to Our Colleagues in Behavioral Healthcare!
As we publish this newsletter, we know everyone continues to grapple with the challenges of COVID-19 and its impact on your patients and your staff.  
 
At the same time, TJC did resume regular surveys last month. So, it's time once again to be survey-ready - not only in terms of standards compliance but also for the new survey process that accommodates COVID-19 guidelines. 
 
To assist in that effort, our first article provides information on how TJC has been resuming survey activity. Our second article covers the new requirements in the Behavioral Health Care manual for programs that treat individuals with addictions
 
We value your feedback on the newsletter. Please send us your comments and tell us what topics you would like to see in future issues. We look forward to hearing from you! And feel free to forward this newsletter to your colleagues.  

Enjoy the rest of your summer and we'll be back with our September edition!

Anne Barrins
President/CEO
Prepare for Your Triennial Survey

Regular TJC surveys resumed in June. Time to gear up for the new survey process that accommodates COVID-19 guidelines. Contact us now and we'll ensure you're survey ready as the "new normal" unfolds!
1-877-546-7206
Tip of the Month
TJC's Quick Safety Issue 54 Promoting Psychosocial Well-being of Health Care Staff during Crisis  provides strategies for supporting your staff through the challenging time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Why Choose
Barrins & Associates?
"We were extremely satisfied with our recent mock survey by Barrins & Associates. Our consultant was an expert on Joint Commission standards and implementation strategies. She had a great teaching style and gave us lots of resources on best practices. She also helped our clinical team practice tracers and interviews that will occur during our TJC survey. That was one of the best benefits of the mock survey, and we feel very well prepared for our upcoming Joint Commission survey."
 
Claire Hick, MHA
CEO
Alexandria, Louisiana
Joint Commission Surveys Resume:
Update on the Rollout
As we know, regular Joint Commission surveys resumed in June. So, how's that going? TJC recently provided an update to our Consultants Forum group. Here's some important info they shared.

Currently, TJC is scheduling surveys in counties identified as low risk for COVID-19. They use two key data points to determine a low risk county:
  1. The 2 week trend of COVID-19 cases
  2. The number of cases per 1,000 people
TJC is using the New York Times database to inform decisions about where to schedule surveys.

As we reported in a recent post, a top priority will be ...
Continue Reading >   
JOINT COMMISSION Standards: 
New Substance Use Treatment Requirements
Heads up! Does your organization provide treatment to individuals with addictions? If so, the new Joint Commission standards for substance use disorder treatment apply to you.

The new requirements became effective July 1st in the Behavioral Health Care Accreditation Program. They're applicable to organizations providing care, treatment, or services to individuals with addictions.

We queried the TJC Standards Interpretation Group to determine ... 
 Continue Reading > 
Barrins & Associates provides Joint Commission and CMS consulting services for the Behavioral Healthcare industry. Our clients include psychiatric hospitals and freestanding Behavioral Healthcare organizations. We specialize in providing Survey Preparation and Continuous Survey Readiness services for the Behavioral Healthcare industry. Barrins & Associates was founded by Anne Barrins who was a Joint Commission surveyor for 13 years.

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