Navicent Health is pleased to announce that three of its hospitals and a number of outpatient facilities have achieved the International Organization for Standardization 9001:2015 certification from Det Norske Veritas /Germanischer Lloyd. ISO 9001:2015 is a set of quality management standards that enable organizations like Navicent Health to meet and exceed customer expectations through continuous process improvement.

ISO is an independent, non-governmental international organization with a global network of national standards bodies. International Standards provide world-class specifications for products, services and systems, to ensure quality, safety and efficiency. ISO has published 22195 International Standards and related documents, covering almost every industry, from technology, to manufacturing, to food safety, to agriculture and healthcare.

ISO certification is recognized as the gold standard for organizations across multiple industries worldwide, including healthcare. Navicent Health has been accredited by DNV GL since 2013. After earning DNV GL accreditation, became certified to ISO standards.

“The DNV GL accreditation ensures that hospitals meet basic requirements by providing safe and effective care, while ISO certification fosters a culture of continuous improvement, high performance and high reliability around customer requirements,” said Casey Bedgood, CSSBB, MPA, System Accreditation Optimization Officer with Navicent Health.

Bedgood and the accreditation team led Navicent Health to transition from ISO 9001:2008 and achieve ISO 9001:2015 certification in just 15 weeks through a three-phase approach that ensured the health system met its ISO certification goal. Those Navicent Health facilities certified include The Medical Center, Navicent Health in Macon; Rehabilitation Hospital, Navicent Health in Macon; Medical Center of Peach County, Navicent Health in Byron; Navicent Health’s urgent care centers in Macon; and numerous health clinics and outpatient facilities throughout central Georgia.

“While the general time frame for planning for ISO 9001:2015 certification is between two and five years, our team succeeded in transitioning from ISO 9001:2008 to ISO 9001:2015 in 15 weeks.   Doing so is an incredible accomplishment and took the devotion of our entire team. This certification proves Navicent Health’s dedication to superior patient-centered care,” said Susan Harris, RN, MBA, CSSBB, Chief Operating Officer, The Medical Center, Navicent Health.
 
In order to receive certification, a healthcare organization must adhere to a customer focused culture and seek to improve hospital performance and reliability. ISO 9001:2015 specifically focuses on seven core areas, including:
 
Customer service

Top-down leadership involvement

Engaging people

Process approach

Continuous improvement

Evidence-based decision making

Relationship management
 
“By implementing ISO 9001:2015 training, we not only achieved certification, but have empowered our employees across multiple Navicent Health entities to continuously improve our processes, which will lead to increased patient satisfaction, increased job satisfaction for our staff, and benefit the health system as a whole. We are so pleased that our amazing employees have embraced and implemented ISO 9001:2015 and achieved this certification,” said Dr. Ninfa M. Saunders, FACHE, President and CEO of Navicent Health.