On March 25, 2016, the Joint Commission revised an accreditation requirement related to written patient care plans for psychiatric hospitals that use Joint Commission accreditation for deemed-status purposes.  Psychiatric hospitals may achieve deemed status through Joint Commission surveys that meet or exceed the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Conditions of Participation (CoP).

Specifically, the Joint Commission has revised Provision of Care, Treatment, and Services (PC) Standard PC.01.03.01, Element of Performance (EP) 6. The revised performance standard requires that written patient care plans now include, in addition to a substantiated diagnosis and documentation evidencing the same, the specific treatment modalities used to treat the patient.  The revision reflects the Joint Commission’s efforts to align its accreditation standards with the CoP requirements for psychiatric hospitals, which require that each patient have an individual comprehensive treatment plan that includes the specific treatment modalities utilized.

The new requirement became effective on April 4, 2016.

*Blake Walsh is admitted only in Tennessee. Her practice is supervised by members of the firm admitted in the District of Columbia.