Christiana Care Health System's Center for Advanced Joint Replacement Awarded Certification from The Joint Commission

WILMINGTON, Del., July 13, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Christiana Care Health System's Center for Advanced Joint Replacement has earned The Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval™ for its total hip and knee replacement programs.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090407/DC95299LOGO)  

The certification award recognizes Christiana Care's compliance with The Joint Commission's national state-of-the-art standards for health care quality and safety in disease-specific care.

Christiana Care is one of only 300 hospitals out of 8,000 in the U.S. to achieve total hip and knee replacement certification. In 2010, Christiana Care performed more than 2,000 total knee and hip replacements.

Christiana Care underwent a rigorous on-site survey in May 2011. A team of Joint Commission expert surveyors evaluated Christiana Care for compliance with standards of care specific to the needs of patients and families, including infection prevention and control, leadership and medication management.

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

"Achieving Joint Commission certification for our hip and knee replacement program is proper recognition of the high standard of care that our doctors, nurses, therapists and all of our employees and volunteers have provided for a number of years," says Brian Galinat, M.D., Chairman of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Christiana Care. "We take pride in helping our patients return to a pain free, active lifestyle and this award is a tangible representation of our daily successes. We will continue to make programmatic improvements that exceed the guidelines suggested by the Joint Commission."

"Obtaining the best outcomes for hip and knee replacements requires real teamwork so patients move seamlessly through the continuum of care," says Leo Raisis, M.D., medical director of the Center for Advanced Joint Replacement. "Joint Commission certification signifies everyone here is focused on exceptional clinical quality and outcomes."

The Joint Commission launched its Disease-Specific Care Certification Program in 2002 to evaluate clinical programs across the continuum of care. Certification requirements address three core areas: compliance with consensus-based national standards; effective use of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines to manage and optimize care; and an organized approach to performance measurement and improvement activities.

Founded in 1951, the Joint Commission is the nation's oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.

SOURCE Christiana Care Health System