Facility Accreditation
& Staff Certification
Our Commitment to Quality
VitalCore Health Strategies is committed to:
- Educating and increasing our practitioners’ overall knowledge
- Fostering professional development and lifelong learning
- Promoting working in corrections as a rewarding career
- Enhancing the public image of the field of corrections and those who work in it
Our Partnerships Provide Power
VitalCore Health Strategies offers the opportunity for our staff and facilities to receive certification and accreditation. Through programs offered by the American Correctional Association (ACA) and the National Commission of Correctional Health Care (NCCHC), our staff are able to receive additional certifications and we help interested facilities receive accreditation.
Accreditation is the Measurement of Excellence
Accreditation is a voluntary process for which each agency facility contracts with an Accrediting Body that is an authority on corrections operations. The accreditation process is used by agencies to ensure operational consistency and adherence to generally accepted best practices for correctional agencies that are evaluated through an audit process. Audits improve facility operations through adherence to clear expected practices relevant to all areas/operations of a corrections facility with an emphasis on:
Accreditation is a voluntary process for which each agency facility contracts with an Accrediting Body that is an authority on corrections operations. The accreditation process is used by agencies to ensure operational consistency and adherence to generally accepted best practices for correctional agencies that are evaluated through an audit process. Audits improve facility operations through adherence to clear expected practices relevant to all areas/operations of a corrections facility with an emphasis on:
Administration and Management
Healthcare Operations (Including Behavioral Health)
Food Service
Sanitation
Staff Education
ACA Facility Accreditation
The American Correctional Association’s Healthcare Performance-Based Standards and Expected Practices has set the standards for jails and prisons and juvenile justice agencies since the 1970s.
This is a voluntary standalone accreditation program for health service delivery. The expected practices created and refined by the American Correctional Association represent fundamental correctional practices that ensure staff and patient safety, healthcare, and security; enhance staff morale; improve record maintenance and data management capabilities; assist in protecting the agency against litigation; and improve the function of the facility or agency at all levels.
NCCHC Facility Accreditation
The National Commission on Correctional Healthcare Standards is a voluntary health services accreditation program for healthcare delivery that has been offered since the 1970s.
NCCHC utilizes external peer review to determine whether correctional institutions meet the standards in the provision of health services, produces resource publications, conducts educational conferences, and offers certification for correctional health professionals.
Staff Certification
& Competencies
Both ACA and NCCHC offer certification programs for correctional healthcare staff. These certifications are given to nurses and healthcare staff who exhibits the skills and knowledge needed to provide quality medical care in a corrections environment. In addition, VitalCore has developed Training Modules and provides Monthly, Annual, and as needed trainings and peer support meetings for administrative, medical, and behavioral health which includes:
- Daily Care Management Calls provide ensure that every employee has corporate level support and guidance to discuss patient care and receive consistent education and guidance from a multidisciplinary team.
- VitalCore focuses on Clinical Competencies, Nursing Practice Acts and Nursing Clinical Guidelines which assist clinicians to provide care within their scope of practice within local, state, and national regulations.
- Internal and third-party peer review and collaboration.
- Verification of licensures and specialized certifications are confirmed through regulatory boards and governing bodies of issuance upon hire and verified monthly to ensure all are active and without disciplinary action.
- Each employee is required to complete First Aid & CPR training and renew the certification prior to expiration. In addition, employees should receive facility-based training specific to each location.
- Daily Care Management Calls provide ensure that every employee has corporate level support and guidance to discuss patient care and receive consistent education and guidance from a multidisciplinary team.
- VitalCore focuses on Clinical Competencies, Nursing Practice Acts and Nursing Clinical Guidelines which assist clinicians to provide care within their scope of practice within local, state, and national regulations.
- Internal and third-party peer review and collaboration.
- Verification of licensures and specialized certifications are confirmed through regulatory boards and governing bodies of issuance upon hire and verified monthly to ensure all are active and without disciplinary action.
- Each employee is required to complete First Aid & CPR training and renew the certification prior to expiration. In addition, employees should receive facility-based training specific to each location.
Accreditation and Staff Certifications significantly impact the facility and are proportionate to the commitment to incorporate the compliance process into daily operations and management of health and treatment services. Evidence has shown the overall benefits include:
- Improved patient care
- Improved operations of health care delivery
- Improved professionalism and morale
- Improved environmental safety
- Improved staff training and outcomes
- Defense against litigation
- Management evaluation, insight, and access to planning tools
- Enhanced public perception
- Safer and more sanitized environments
- Opportunity for management and staff to work together to evaluate operations, assess needs and develop solutions
