Nicklaus Children's Hospital Achieves Accreditation with Excellence from the Global Healthcare Accreditation (GHA) Program

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Dec. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Nicklaus Children's Hospital https://www.nicklaushealth.org/home in Miami, Florida, has been awarded Accreditation with Excellence for a three-year term by the Global Healthcare Accreditation (GHA) Program (http://globalhealthcareaccreditation.com/) for its Medical Travel Services Program.

Founded in 1950, Nicklaus Children's Hospital is the first children's hospital to achieve GHA accreditation and is South Florida's only licensed specialty hospital exclusively for children. The 309-bed hospital is renowned for excellence in all aspects of pediatric medicine, with many programs routinely ranked among the nation's best by U.S. News & World Report, since 2008.

According to Dr. Andrea Maggioni, Director of Global Health at Nicklaus Children's Hospital, "It is a great honor for Nicklaus Children's Hospital to be formally recognized as the first pediatric program to meet the high standards of the Global Healthcare Accreditation Program. Our fundamental vision has always been "to be where the children are", we are very proud of the accomplishments of our Global Health team to meet and exceed the unique needs of our extended international patient families, as well as the medical travel partners that support them throughout the continuum of care. We sincerely thank GHA for providing the tools and quality framework needed to measure and improve the fulfilling work we do every day."

The Global Healthcare Accreditation (GHA) Program was established with the goal of enhancing the patient experience for medical travelers across the entire Medical Travel Care Continuum. GHA standards, accredited by ISQua (through the International Society for Quality in Health Care External Evaluation Association), provide concrete and measurable value to patients by ensuring that the hospital or clinic has instituted processes that are customized to the medical travelers' unique needs and expectations and are consistently monitored for improvement. Additionally, GHA provides healthcare organizations with a unique opportunity to not only acquire skills and competencies designed to strengthen their medical travel services, but also impact business performance.

The accreditation survey at Nicklaus Children's Hospital was conducted remotely due to the current COVID-19 pandemic. The virtual accreditation process was developed by GHA to facilitate seamless communication, observation, and data sharing to maximize surveyor-client interactions and ultimately provide organizations with a similar level of value as would be provided during an onsite survey. 

Karen Timmons, Chief Executive Officer of the Global Healthcare Accreditation Program stated, "Traveling patients and payers are increasingly demanding a high-quality patient experience. GHA strives to assure that the patient is actively engaged and that the organization is proactive in managing cultural sensitivities and communication at each touch point along this medical travel care continuum.  We congratulate Nicklaus Children's Hospital for achieving GHA Accreditation with Excellence and for its commitment to supporting the needs of medical travel patients, their parents and companions."

About Nicklaus Children's Hospital:

Founded in 1950 by Variety Clubs International, Nicklaus Children's Hospital is South Florida's only licensed specialty hospital exclusively for children, with nearly 800 attending physicians and more than 475 pediatric subspecialists. The 309-bed hospital, known as Miami Children's Hospital from 1983 through 2014, is renowned for excellence in all aspects of pediatric medicine, with many programs routinely ranked among the nation's best by U.S. News & World Report, since 2008. The hospital is also home to the largest pediatric teaching program in the southeastern United States and has been designated an American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Magnet facility, the nursing profession's most prestigious institutional honor.

For more information visit: https://www.nicklaushealth.org/home

About the Global Healthcare Accreditation (GHA) Program:

Founded in 2016, the Global Healthcare Accreditation for Medical Travel Services is the only accrediting body focused solely on medical travel services. GHA's international standards and professional norms for medical travel were developed in consultation with leading global experts in the industry, including providers, insurers and employers committed to establish best practices in medical tourism and health tourism, which support healthcare providers in validating quality and patient experience, increasing visibility, and implementing a sustainable business model for providers along the entire medical travel care continuum. GHA received ISQua's International Society for Quality in Health Care External Evaluation Association (IEEA) accreditation in 2019.

For more information visit: www.GlobalHealthcareAccreditation.com

SOURCE Global Healthcare Accreditation