| Appendix 2 |
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Process (i) Applications for Accreditation should be received by an appointed officer of the accrediting organisation. (ii) The application should specify the category of respiratory function assessment for which Accreditation is sought and a list of the individual tests for which Accreditation is sought. (iii) Accreditation should be granted only in relation to those categories/tests for which application is made. (iv) The professional body should respond to all applications by providing applicant laboratories with Accreditation guidelines and the application forms which seek information regarding the laboratory and investigations/measurements that it performs ("the Accreditation Package – available from respiratory society websites"). (v) Self assessment is a key feature of this phase of the process so that each centre responds to the questions adequately. The laboratory completes the forms and returns them to the professional body. (vi) Copies of all correspondence should be sent to the Accreditation Coordinator. Fees (vii) An "initial assessment fee” will be necessary (e.g. Aus$275; NZ $250; UK £120, Euro 170, US$340) to cover the cost of the initial assessment of submitted material. (viii) A further fee (the "site visit" fee) should be charged if the application is found to be acceptable, and a site visit is arranged (see below). These fees, which are set to recover costs, should be determined by the professional organisation and revised from time to time. (ix) A current schedule of fees should be obtainable from the professional organisation website. Assessors & Assessment Panels (x) On receipt of the Accreditation fee and application forms the Accreditation Coordinator should appoint an Assessment Panel and its Chairperson. (xi) The assessors will be recognized experts in the physiological and/or technical aspects of respiratory function assessment and its application to the diagnosis and management of respiratory disease. (xii) The assessment panel should normally have three members, at least one of whom should be from a city other than the one in which the service undergoing accreditation is located. While individual assessors need not necessarily be members of a professional body, at least two members of the assessment panel should be. Where practicable, two assessors should be respiratory scientist. (xiii) The chairperson of the assessment panel should be responsible to ensure that the documentation supplied by the applicant laboratory to be reviewed by the Panel Members and seek supplementary information where necessary. (xiv) The result of the initial assessment should be given to the applicant within eight weeks of receipt of the application. (xv) If the application is unacceptable the reasons for the decision should be provided. (xvi) If the application is acceptable a site visit should be arranged at a mutually convenient time (within two to three months of notice of approval). Site Visit (xvii) The site visit is a critical step in the accreditation process. At the site visit the veracity of answers provided in the application is examined, and specific questions raised by these responses and by inspection of the facilities addressed. (xviii) The Chairperson of the Assessment Panel is responsible for the review process including producing a report and recommendations which should be forwarded to the Accreditation Coordinator. The assessment process has two purposes: (a) Advisory - to advise on ways in which perceived deficiencies of a Service can be corrected. (b) Evaluation - to establish whether a Service is competent and effective |
| Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 January 2009 20:46 |
