Inova Alexandria Hospital earns Joint Replacement ‘Gold Seal of Approval’

Alexandria, VA – (November 7, 2012) — Inova Alexandria Hospital Joint Replacement Program has earned the Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval™ for healthcare quality. The Joint Commission awarded the hospital “Disease-Specific Care Certification” for Knee and Hip Joint Replacement Surgery programs.

To earn this distinction, a disease management program undergoes an extensive, unannounced, on-site evaluation by a team of Joint Commission reviewers every two years. The program is evaluated against Joint Commission standards through an assessment of a program’s processes, the program’s ability to evaluate and improve care within its own organization, and interviews with patients and staff.

“In achieving Joint Commission certification, Inova Alexandria Hospital has demonstrated its commitment to the highest level of care for its patients with hip and knee joint replacements,” says Jean Range, MS, RN, CPHQ executive director, Disease-Specific Care Certification, The Joint Commission. “Certification is a voluntary process and I commend Inova Alexandria Hospital for successfully undertaking this challenge to elevate its standard of care and instill confidence in the community it serves.”

The Joint Commission launched its “Disease-Specific Care Certification” program in 2002, the first program of its kind in the country to certify disease management programs.

“With Joint Commission certification, we continue to make significant investment in quality.  Joint Commission accreditation provides us a framework to take our organization to the next level and helps create a culture of excellence,” says Christine Candio, CEO.  “Achieving Joint Commission certification in joint replacements, for our organization, is a major step toward maintaining excellence and continually improving the care we provide.”

An independent, not-for-profit organization, The Joint Commission is the nation’s oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care. Learn more at www.jointcommission.org.
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About Inova
Inova is a not-for-profit health care system located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, serving over two million people with over 1,700 licensed beds based in Northern Virginia.  Inova consists of five hospitals including the area’s only Level 1 Trauma Center and Level 3 Neonatal Intensive Care unit.  Inova encompasses many health services including the nationally and internationally recognized Inova Heart and Vascular Institute (IHVI), Inova Translational Medicine Institute (ITMI) on genomics, Inova Neuroscience Institute and Inova Children’s Hospital.  Inova’s mission is to improve the health of the diverse community it serves through excellence in patient care, education and research.  More information and statistics about Inova is at www.inova.org.
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