Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia Health Center was awarded the highest recognition for health care organizations, accreditation for all services. The three-day unannounced survey was conducted by the Joint Commission. The review found the health center in full compliance.
The UHC voluntarily goes through the rigorous accreditation process to insure that UGA students receive the highest quality health care. The Joint Commission surveyors conduct an unannounced visit every 18 – 39 months and the health center must complete a self-review annually. Only 26 out of 1,700 college health centers nationwide choose to go through the challenging Joint Commission accrediting process. UHC is the only college health center accredited by the Joint Commission in the state of Georgia, and has been fully accredited since 1989.
“The Joint Commission is internationally known as health care’s gold standard accrediting body focusing on safety, quality outcomes, and patient/client centered care,” said Dr. Jean Chin, executive director of UHC. “Meeting these rigorous standards takes an organization wide approach to performance improvement, service excellence and safety.”
UHC is a unit of the Division of Student Affairs and is staffed by over 200 employees, including 17 physicians with board certification or board eligibility in internal medicine, family practice, sports medicine, psychiatry and gynecology. UHC features four primary care clinics and a variety of specialty care clinics including women’s health, sports medicine, allergy/travel medicine, dermatology, vision care, dental care and physical therapy. Supporting services include pharmacy, laboratory, and radiology departments. Extensive Counseling and Psychiatric Services and Health Promotion departments complete the comprehensive health center.