1st Advantage Dental has achieved accreditation by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC). 1st Advantage Dental is a group dental practice with 15 practices in Upstate New York, Western Massachusetts and Vermont. AAAHC accreditation means that the organization participates in on-going self evaluation, peer review and education to continuously improve its care and services. Ambulatory health care organizations seeking accreditation by AAAHC undergo an extensive self-assessment and on-site survey by AAAHC expert surveyors – physicians, nurses, and administrators who are actively involved in ambulatory health care. The survey is consultative and educational, presenting best practices to help an organization improve its care and services.
Dr. Knoll
AAAHC currently accredits more than 6,000 organizations in a wide variety of ambulatory health care settings including ambulatory surgery centers, community health centers, medical and dental group practices, medical home practices, and managed care organizations. They are also the official accrediting organization for the US Coast Guard. Formed in 1979, it is a private, non-profit organization with a single focus on the ambulatory care community.
Status as an accredited organization means 1st Advantage Dental has met nationally recognized standards for the provision of quality health care set by AAAHC. Not all ambulatory health care organizations seek accreditation; not all that undergo the rigorous on-site survey process are granted accreditation.
1st Advantage Dental is managed by American Dental Partners (ADPI). ADPI was founded in 1995 when the dental profession was fragmented, decentralized and not positioned for the future. Over 80% of dentists practiced alone, struggling with balancing the day-to-day demands of running a practice. The overall demographic was male-dominated and rapidly aging. ADPI’s vision was two-fold. First, they saw the industry’s need to move toward a more synergistic and streamlined group practice model. Second, they knew the practice methodologies of dentistry needed to evolve — in order to attract more vibrant, diverse and lifestyle-conscious people to the profession. Today, American Dental Partners is a partner for more than 20 affiliated dental groups across the nation.
The Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care is comprised of 17 Association Members that provide representatives to serve on the AAAHC Board of Directors. Those associations and their affiliated board members can be found HERE. They have just announced that they have rewritten Standards in advance of the 2018 Accreditation Handbook for Ambulatory Health Care publication release in September. AAAHC reformatted its existing standards to better demonstrate their intended meaning and simplify the self-assessment and survey processes. The revised standards will be implemented during surveys that begin on or after March 1, 2018. Click HERE to download the PDF.Read other American Dental Partners’ stories on Group Dentistry Now – HERE
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