Abstract
This article was migrated. The article was marked as recommended. Accreditation aims to ensure that generally-accepted standards of educational program quality are being met. The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME), the accrediting body for medical education programs leading to the MD degree, has a process to address circumstances at medical schools arising from acute emergency situations. This involves consultation with faculty and administration at the affected school and collection of data related to compliance with accreditation standards through written reports and on-site visits. The actions of both the medical schools in New Orleans and the LCME following Hurricane Katrina in 2005 illustrate this process. While the need to respond to requests for information from an accrediting body places additional burdens on a medical school's faculty and administration during an emergency, such oversight also ensures that the medical education program continues to meet standards. This provides assurance of educational quality to school personnel and students, as well as to the school's publics. Accreditation agencies should consider how their standards and processes support a timely and flexible response to disaster situations that occur at accredited schools.
Highlights
An early definition of accreditation [Blauch, 1959] includes the elements that remain relevant today: "Accreditation... is the recognition accorded to an institution that meets the standards or criteria established by a competent agency or association
The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME), the accrediting body for medical education programs leading to the MD degree, has a process to address circumstances at medical schools arising from acute emergency situations
While the need to respond to requests for information from an accrediting body places additional burdens on a medical school’s faculty and administration during an emergency, such oversight ensures that the medical education program continues to meet standards
Summary
An early definition of accreditation [Blauch, 1959] includes the elements that remain relevant today: "Accreditation... is the recognition accorded to an institution that meets the standards or criteria established by a competent agency or association. The key concepts included explicitly or implicitly in the definition are that accreditation is standards-based and that it aims to ensure educational program quality Both these concepts are centrally important when medical schools find themselves in difficult circumstances. Examples of acute emergencies include a natural disaster (e.g., hurricane, earthquake, flooding) or an outbreak of war or civil unrest In this category, a medical school must identify the strategies and resources to rapidly adjust to the new circumstances. The medical school returns to "normal" or to a new steady-state after the disruptions caused by the emergency have been resolved In this category, there are circumstances, such as financial or other resource limitations, that affect the ability of a medical school to meet the requirements of the accreditation standards on an ongoing basis. Each of the written and survey visit reports were reviewed by the LCME to ensure that compliance with relevant accreditation standards was being maintained
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