CARF Accreditation

We were surveyed by CARF Monday and Tuesday of this week. This is why I’ve skipped a few days posting here. I don’t know the results yet, but I’m pretty sure we passed the survey. CARF will contact us shortly to let us know the results. CARF accreditation is a like a seal of approval. Our outpatient facility was measured by over 900 standards to ensure we’re operating by industry standards. The CARF surveyors, by the way, were tremendously helpful and very friendly, making a nerve-wracking process much easier to go through.

CARF measures business practices, health and safety, cultural diversity, risk management, clinical operations, medical practices, and a number of other areas. The entire process has made us a better outpatient addiction treatment center. Below is how CARF explains why CARF accreditation matters:

Consumers face a variety of options when deciding what services to use and who should provide them. Accreditation is a sign of quality and is an important consideration in their decision making. They look for CARF accreditation in their choice of treatment for addiction and substance abuse, rehabilitation of a disability, home and community services, retirement living, and other health and human services.

CARF International has surveyed hundreds of thousands of programs throughout North and South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia since it was founded as an independent, nonprofit accreditor in 1966.

The value of accreditation goes beyond a competitive distinction for service providers and a framework for continuous quality improvement. CARF offers a wide variety of value-added benefits and several unique advantages to help providers receive the greatest return for their accreditation investment.

When a person decides to seek treatment and they aren’t certain about the quality of available facilities, if the facility has been accredited by CARF, the person can at least feel comfortable that the facility meets the industry standards. I’ll report back when we get the results.