The Joint Commission (TJC, formerly The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations) is the largest private, non-profit accrediting and standards-setting body in health care in the United States. It accredits more than 22,000 American healthcare organizations.
TJC's The Gold Seal of Approval®, or accreditation, requires an organization to pass an on-site examination by a TJC survey team at least every 3 years. Laboratories are surveyed every 2 years.
TJC annually publishes the National Patient Safety Goals. The intent of these goals is to improve health care. Some of the goals published by TJC that pertain to the laboratory include:
- Improving the accuracy of patient identification
- Improving the effectiveness of communication among caregivers
- Reducing the risk of healthcare-associated infections.
