Hospice of the Sacred Heart Awarded CHAP Accreditation

Community Health Accreditation Partner, Inc., (CHAP) announced today that Hospice of the Sacred Heart has been awarded CHAP Accreditation under the CHAP Hospice provider Standards of Excellence. Accreditation is for a three year period.

CHAP Accreditation demonstrates that Hospice of the Sacred Heart meets the industry’s highest nationally recognized standards. The rigorous evaluation by CHAP focuses on structure and function, quality of services and products, human and financial resources and long term viability. Simply stated, adherence to CHAP’s standards leads to better quality care. “By achieving CHAP Accreditation, Hospice of the Sacred Heart has shown a commitment to excellence,” said Karen Collishaw, CHAP President and CEO. “This is the 11^th year Hospice of the Sacred Heart has achieved CHAP Accreditation, and we are excited to continue our partnership by offering support in its commitment to providing quality care and continuous improvement.”

Hospice of the Sacred Heart provides a variety of hospice services to patients and their families in a nine county region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Their main office is located in Wilkes-Barre and they operate an Inpatient Unit in Dunmore and a Center for Education in Moosic.

CHAP is an independent, not-for-profit, accrediting body for community-based health care organizations. Created in 1965, CHAP was the first to recognize the need and value for accreditation in community-based care. CHAP is the oldest national, community-based accrediting body with more than 9,000 agencies currently accredited nationwide. Through “deeming authority” granted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), CHAP has the regulatory authority to survey agencies providing home health, hospice and home medical equipment services, to determine if they meet Medicare Conditions of Participation and CMS Quality Standards. CHAP’s purpose is to define and advance the highest standards of community-based care.

“We are forever grateful for our caring and dedicated staff, who advance our mission every day and make us worthy and proud of our CHAP Accreditation. This is a key benchmark for measuring quality and gives our organization an opportunity to distinguish our strengths and establish areas for improvement,” said Diane Baldi, CEO, Hospice of the Sacred Heart.

For more information about the CHAP Accreditation process, please visit the CHAP website at www.chapinc.org. For additional information on CHAP, please contact Nathan Constable, Senior Manager, Communications and Industry Affairs, at 202-467-1716, or nconstable@chapinc.org.

For additional information, contact Diane Baldi, RN, CEO at Hospice of the Sacred Heart at 570-706-2400.

The mission of Hospice of the Sacred Heart is to provide comfort, care, hope and choice to patients and their families, while guiding them through their end of life journey.