Bogus JACHO Surveyors

As a number of our affiliated hospitals are either preparing for or undergoing their Joint Commission surveys, I found this interesting...

Bogus JCAHO Surveyors Visiting Hospitals

The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations warned hospitals to be on the lookout for bogus JCAHO surveyors, following reports earlier this month that individuals posing as surveyors were at three hospitals.

In two instances, one on the East Coast and one on the West Coast, the bogus surveyors arrived around 3 am and asked to survey different areas of the hospitals. In another instance in the Midwest, the phony surveyors arrived around 8 am and claimed they did not need to show JCAHO identification. In all three cases, hospital staff questioned the imposters, who then left.

Hospital staff always should request to see a surveyor’s ID badge and an official letter explaining the visit, according to JCAHO officials.

The organization is urging hospitals that experience a similar situation or have any questions about whether an individual is a surveyor to contact their account representative or JCAHO’s vice president of accreditation field operations, Joe Cappiello, at (630) 792-5757.