Accreditation is a type of quality assurance process under which services and operations of an organization or program are evaluated and verified by an external body to determine if applicable and recognized standards are met. While Decision Aid is not an accrediting body, we can provide recommendations on an applicable accreditation for your organization and assist in compiling the necessary documentation for final review by the assessors. You may be further along than you think in achieving accreditation or improving your score.
Large agencies feel so strongly in their accreditation program that they hire a manager to oversee the process. We understand that this is not realistic for most agencies and that preparation for accreditation or reaccreditation is a significant burden on your already overwhelmed staff. Our role is to enable your organization to succeed in the accreditation process while reducing impact on your operations. If gaps are identified that must be resolved prior to documentation review, Decision Aid can assist through our many other services or provide recommendations on other firms that specialize in a certain topic.
One example of a standard of which accreditation is evaluated is the ANSI/EMAP 4-2016 Emergency Management Standard. This is a compilation of 64 standards on a diverse set of emergency management topics. For an emergency management agency, this standard assists in continuous improvement and provides proof to elected officials, stakeholders, and constituents that their agency has worked towards achieving consensus-based standards for this profession. Regardless if you are working towards Emergency Management Accreditation Program status or not, Decision Aid emergency management products are aligned with the Emergency Management Standard when applicable to ensure they are compliant if and when you decide to become accredited.