The Joint Commission is a non-profit organisation that sets performance standards for health care and evaluates health care organisations against those standards. Founded in 1951, it operates primarily in the United States and internationally, providing accreditation and certification to hospitals, nursing care centres, home care services, ambulatory care facilities, and behavioural health care providers.
Its accreditation is widely recognised as a symbol of quality in the American health care system. The Joint Commission has evaluated more than 22,000 health care programmes and organisations, making it one of the largest accrediting bodies in the sector. The organisation's work focuses on driving quality improvement and patient safety through evidence-based standards.
For nurses, The Joint Commission's standards influence clinical practice, staffing policies, and safety protocols across the care settings where they work. Its accreditation decisions can affect an organisation's eligibility for Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement, linking quality benchmarks to financial outcomes for health care providers.
