Accreditation in healthcare including regular onsite inspections plays a crucial role in maintaining clinical quality, patient & staff safety, the overall patient experience, and much more. COVID-19 has taught us that a new, flexible approach is needed.

When the pandemic struck, Diplomatic Council member and partner Temos overcame the first shock, faced the challenge, and reacted. The standard procedures that had worked for more than ten years needed to change quickly. ”Innovation” was urgently needed where “standardization” had been the norm.

First, scheduled in-person onsite assessments were postponed protecting the assessors and the healthcare providers. Second, the Temos team responded to the needs of its clients and rapidly began the development of COVID-19 safe standards for hospitals and clinics.

In May 2020, Temos published and made available free of charge, a set of 60 COVID-19 risk mitigation standards. Since its launch, the “COVID-19 Safe: Certificate of Compliance” standards have been downloaded by more than 170 organizations from 40 countries on six continents. Since May, the standards have been continuously updated and currently version 3.0 is available.

COVID-19 has changed healthcare now and for the future teaching us the value of systematic implementation of standards like Temos’ that are based on international best practices, rigorous scientific research, and experience from its multi-disciplinary team. Quick responses to new and changing situations are essential to maximizing patient & staff safety as well as minimizing risk. Healthcare provides must embrace the new healthcare landscape and Temos is ready to respond.