Preparing for Accreditation
Partners in Accreditation Readiness
Many national partner organizations play important roles in facilitating state, tribal, local, and territorial health department engagement in accreditation. In addition to partnering with the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB), CDC collaborates with the following organizations in advancing accreditation readiness:
- American Public Health Association (APHA)
- Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO)
- National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)
- National Indian Health Board (NIHB)
- National Network of Public Health Institutes (NNPHI)
- Public Health Foundation (PHF)
What Should Health Departments Do?
- Learn about accreditation—Visit PHAB and other partner websites to learn about the accreditation standards and measures, the accreditation process, and supporting materials. Sign up to receive the PHAB e-newsletter.
- Prepare for accreditation—Determine where your health department has gaps and begin to address them. Identify individuals to work on cross-department accreditation readiness efforts.
- Celebrate and sustain your accomplishments—If your health department is accredited, celebrate and tout this impressive achievement! Plan for reaccreditation. If you’re not yet accredited, recognize where you’re already meeting standards and highlight those successes to build enthusiasm for the next steps. Continue to improve your performance against the PHAB standards.
Preparation Tools and Resources
State & Territorial Health Department Accreditation
Information from ASTHO about accreditation preparation tools and current state and territorial activities
Local Health Department Accreditation
Tools, resources, and training opportunities from NACCHO to help local health departments prepare for accreditation and use quality improvement processes to improve performance and meet PHAB standards
Tribal Public Health Accreditation Resource Center
Information, resources, and tools about public health accreditation for tribes, hosted by NIHB. NIHB also provides small funding awards to tribal health departments to accelerate accreditation readiness.
Seven Directions Public Health Accreditation Resources for Tribes
- Public Health Accreditation Guidebook and Roadmap [PDF-7MB]
- Guide to Tribal Health Department Strategic Planning [PDF-1.38MB]
- Guide to Tribal Health Department Self-Assessment for Public Health Accreditation [PDF-1.23MB]
PHAB Resources
PHAB has helpful resources for health departments preparing to achieve or maintain accreditation status. These resources include orientation training modules, the Standards and Measures, the Guide to Health Department Accreditation, and glossary. Under the “Accreditation Process” tab are tip sheets, readiness checklists, application information, and an accreditation coordinator handbook.
PHF: Performance Management, Quality Improvement, and Workforce Development Resources
PHF’s site offers assorted tools and resources concerning performance management, quality improvement, public health improvement, workforce development, and other topics. The site includes the PHF Public Health Improvement Resource Center, where users can search an online database of information and resources about building capacity of public health systems by category, such as accreditation domain and essential service.
NNPHI: Performance and Quality Improvement Resources
NNPHI and its member public institutes provide technical assistance and resources to advance accreditation, performance, and quality improvement. The site also includes information about how to join the Public Health Performance Improvement Network, a CDC-supported network for practitioners involved in accreditation and other performance improvement efforts.
