The Joint Commission develops all its standards in consultation with health care experts, providers, measurement experts, purchasers, and consumers. Standards are generally updated every two years and change only to improve clarity or reduce duplication. We add new standards only when they will have a direct impact on the quality of care. Surveyors will evaluate an organization's compliance against all applicable standards for that accreditation program and the population served. An organization's scope of services defines which standards apply.
Surveyors evaluate compliance with each of the standards using a five-point scoring scale.
The scoring of each standard and its intent takes the form of questions. After the surveyor answers the questions, the worst score from all the questions is assigned to the standard. An organization doesn't have to be in full compliance with every standard to become accredited. Rather, the organization must demonstrate overall compliance with the full set of applicable standards. Scores of 2 to 5 result in a written recommendation in the final accreditation report.