By demonstrating compliance with The Joint Commission’s national standards for health care quality and safety, Austin Child Guidance Center has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval™. The accreditation award recognizes Austin Child Guidance Center’s dedication to complying with Joint Commission’s state-of-the-art standards on a continuous basis.
Austin Child Guidance Center, an outpatient children’s mental health organization, was first accredited in 1986 and every three years undergoes an extensive evaluation process to maintain its accreditation. The Joint Commission conducted an unannounced, on-site evaluation of Austin Child Guidance Center on August 16-17, 2007. “We sought continued accreditation for our organization because we want to demonstrate our commitment to quality mental health care for children, adolescents, and families,” says Donald J. Zappone, Dr.P.H., executive director. “We view obtaining Joint Commission accreditation as another effort toward maintaining the highest standards of treatment.”
“Austin Child Guidance Center’s accreditation achievement is a demonstration of the organization’s leadership and staff commitment to excellence,” says Mary Cesare-Murphy, Ph.D., executive director, Behavioral Health Care Accreditation Program, The Joint Commission. “Joint Commission accreditation requires organization-wide dedication to providing safe, client-focused care, treatment and services.”
Austin Child Guidance Center is a nonprofit organization committed to improving the mental health of children through early intervention, diagnosis, and treatment. Since 1951, Austin Child Guidance Center has been helping families in the Austin community build emotionally healthy lives regardless of their income or ability to pay with a sliding fee scale. A multidisciplinary team of psychologists, social workers, counselors, and psychiatrists provide mental health treatment services, including individual/family therapy, group counseling, and parent education classes as well as evaluation services, including psychological assessments and psychiatric evaluations. Austin Child Guidance Center also serves as a training site for graduate students completing advanced degrees and seeking careers in the mental health field.
Founded in 1951, The Joint Commission seeks to continuously improve the safety and quality of care provided to the public through the provision of health care accreditation and related services that support performance improvement in health care organizations. The Joint Commission evaluates and accredits nearly 15,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States, including more than 8,000 hospitals and home care organizations, and more than 6,800 other health care organizations that provide long term care, assisted living, behavioral health care, laboratory and ambulatory care services. An independent, not-for-profit organization, The Joint Commission is the nation’s oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.
Media contact:
Josie Geck, Community Relations Coordinator
(512) 451-2242
jgeck@austinchildguidance.org
