Facility Standards

The American Board for Certification in Orthotics, Prosthetics & Pedorthics, Inc., (ABC) implemented its facility accreditation program in 1948 guided by the view that accreditation should be founded upon standards that are broad in scope and focus on those aspects of organizational activities that most directly influence the quality of orthotic and prosthetic patient care. The standards support the ABC mission to provide quality healthcare in O&P practices and consequently help increase efficiency and support initiatives to improve patient outcomes.

The program encompasses comments and recommendations from a variety of resources including the federal government, business owners, clinical practitioners, patients, and healthcare payer and referral sources. The standards were field tested through on-site evaluations and written surveys to representative patient care organizations. As the foremost standard for O&P patient care facilities, ABC accreditation is commonly used as a standard of quality care by insurance companies and regulatory bodies.

The standards used in determining accreditation rulings are organized into five major sections:

• Organization, Governance and Administration Management

• Professional Staff Qualifications and Responsibilities

• Quality Assessment and Improvement

• Patient Care Management

• Facility and Safety Management