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Defeat the "Joint Commission Jitters"

Staff Development Weekly: Insight on Evidence-Based Practice in Education, December 13, 2007

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Even the best-trained staff members can find themselves a bundle of nervous energy on the day of a Joint Commission (formerly JCAHO) survey. That fear can lead to uncertainty or even panic if the staff member is pulled aside to answer questions from a surveyor. However, there are a number of methods to prevent the "Joint Commission Jitters." Here are some helpful hints for staff members designed to help them stay calm when approached by a surveyor:

• Make sure you understand the surveyor's question. If you do not understand the question, don't be afraid to ask for a clarification.
• When asked a question, just answer the question the surveyor asked. There is an understandable tendency to "overanswer" a question, particularly when someone is nervous. This can have a domino effect, leading the surveyor down a path he or she had not intended to follow.
• If you don't know the answer, don't make one up. When nervousness kicks in, you might throw out what feels like the right answer (but isn't). Rather than make up an answer, tell the surveyor how you would find out the answer.

To get more information, go to Briefings on the Joint Commission (BOJC). For the cost of just three stories, you can get the entire December issue of BOJC. Click here to choose between the PDF and HTML versions for just $30. Subscribers to the online version of BOJC have free access to this article. Subscribers to the print newsletter can find this article in their December issue.

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