Georgia Center for Joint Care Earns Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval
Will Celebrate Certification on Wednesday
MACON, GA (February 18, 2011) – The Medical Center of Central Georgia (MCCG) has earned The Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval™ for its knee and hip replacement programs by demonstrating compliance with The Joint Commission's national standards for health care quality and safety in disease-specific care. The certification award recognizes the Georgia Center for Joint Care's dedication to continuous compliance with The Joint Commission's state-of-the- art standards.
"With Joint Commission certification, we are making a significant investment in quality on a day-to-day basis from the top down,” said Dr. Robert Thornsberry, co-medical director for the Georgia Center for Joint Care. “Joint Commission accreditation provides us a framework to take The Medical Center of Central Georgia to the next level and helps create a culture of excellence. Achieving Joint Commission certification in our hip and knee replacement programs is a major step toward maintaining excellence and continually improving the care we provide.”
The Georgia Center for Joint Care will celebrate this certification on Wednesday from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. in the West Tower Lobby at MCCG. COO Joe Lavelle, Dr. Thornsberry, and other hospital administration and directors will make remarks. This is not a public event but the media is invited to attend.
“Achieving the national recognition of certification as a joint replacement center of excellence through The Joint Commission is extremely satisfying to our high performance, multidisciplinary team with The Georgia Center for Joint Care,” said Dr. Donald Beringer, co-medical director for the Georgia Center for Joint Care. “This reflects the passion we all have to provide the best care experience and to deliver outstanding quality outcomes for people of middle Georgia needing hip and knee replacement.”
MCCG underwent a rigorous on-site survey in December 2010. A team of Joint Commission expert surveyors evaluated MCCG for compliance with standards of care specific to the needs of patients and families, including infection prevention and control, leadership and medication management.
"In achieving Joint Commission certification, the Georgia Center for Joint Care has demonstrated its commitment to the highest level of care for its patients in need of knee or hip replacement," said Jean Range, M.S., R.N., C.P.H.Q. executive director, Disease-Specific Care Certification, The Joint Commission. “Certification is a voluntary process and I commend The Medical Center of Central Georgia for successfully undertaking this challenge to elevate its standard of care and instill confidence in the community it serves.”
The Joint Commission's Disease-Specific Care Certification Program, launched in 2002, is designed to evaluate clinical programs across the continuum of care. Certification requirements address three core areas: compliance with consensus-based national standards, effective use of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines to manage and optimize care, and an organized approach to performance measurement and improvement activities.