This article, “The sustainability of hospital accreditation models: a cross-sectional study,” published in the International Journal for Quality in Health Care in 2025, addresses a critical issue in modern healthcare: the sustainability of hospital accreditation programs. Despite their recognized importance in strengthening organizational culture, standardizing practices, driving change, and increasing efficiency, the long-term viability of these programs is challenged by rapid changes in the health sector and static accreditation standards. This disparity jeopardizes their continued effectiveness.
The study, authored by Mohammed Hussein, Milena Pavlova, and Wim Groot, aimed to identify crucial improvements needed to enhance the sustainability of the hospital accreditation model in Saudi Arabia. To achieve this, a cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted between July and August 2022, inviting quality managers from accredited Saudi Arabian hospitals to participate. The researchers developed a structured questionnaire, using a 5-point Likert scale, to rate the importance of proposed changes across four key areas: accreditation policies, standards development, evaluation methods, and the evaluation team.
The findings underscore the significant importance of several improvements for the long-term relevance of the hospital accreditation scheme in Saudi Arabia. Key recommendations perceived as most important by quality managers include:
- Shifting the focus of accreditation standards from structure and compliance to outcomes and improvement (mean importance = 4.47).
- Updating standards periodically to reflect current best practices and research (mean importance = 4.41).
- Integrating consumer perspectives in all aspects of accreditation, including decisions (mean importance = 4.37).
- Other important improvements include emerging telehealth and artificial intelligence in accreditation evaluation and implementing strategies to minimize variations among survey teams.
The study also revealed that quality managers with more years of experience in the field perceived the importance of these improvements significantly higher. These insights are crucial for policymakers and other stakeholders globally to redesign traditional accreditation models, ensuring they remain relevant and can effectively complement other tools for improving the quality of healthcare services.
APA Reference: Hussein, M., Pavlova, M., & Groot, W. (2025). The sustainability of hospital accreditation models: a cross-sectional study. International Journal for Quality in Health Care, 37(1), mzaf017. https://doi.org/10.1093/intqhc/mzaf017.
