The Joint Commission’s Accreditation 360 Reflects a Simpler Path to Safer Care

By Trisha L. Coady, Executive Vice President, Workforce Development Solutions 

Anyone who has worked in clinical or compliance leadership, or on the frontlines of patient care, knows that accreditation can be overwhelming. For the most part, each regulation is well-intentioned on its own. But when the number surpasses 1,500, ensuring a clear path forward becomes a challenge for healthcare organizations, especially when those regulations conflict with one another. 

In the most significant rewrite since Medicare was established in 1965, The Joint Commission is scaling back, cutting hospital standards by nearly 50%. Accreditation 360, officially announced on June 30, 2025, reflects a new mindset: It’s being described by The Joint Commission as “a dynamic, constantly evolving, forward-looking process that fosters continuous engagement and improvement, accountability, and lasting impact in healthcare quality and safety.”  

What’s Changing in Accreditation 360? 

In short, the new plan introduces: 

• A simplified accreditation manual and Continuous Engagement Model 

• Removal of 714 requirements from the hospital accreditation program 

• Streamlined patient safety practices, organized into 14 National Performance Goals 

• Outcome-based certification in high-impact clinical areas 

• Broader resources for learning, including the SAFEST program 

Where We Stand, and How We Can Help 

As a nurse and former healthcare entrepreneur, I’ve seen firsthand how complex care delivery has become, and how heavily that complexity weighs on the people providing care. In my current role at HealthStream, I’m passionate about addressing these challenges across competency development, clinical education, quality, safety, and the revenue cycle. Through it all, my focus has never changed: to support and empower the teams doing the work.  

Our collective priority should be to ensure all communities, both urban and rural, have access to safe care. Regulations ought to be purposeful and support healthcare operations in achieving this form of success vs requirements for requirements’ sake. This shift from The Joint Commission is a step in that direction.  

At HealthStream, we’ve long believed that meaningful change doesn’t come from compliance checklists. It comes from equipping the workforce with the confidence, knowledge, and skills to deliver safer care every day. We’re aligned with the Joint Commission’s key rationale points for making this change because it streamlines and simplifies processes, provides better support, and more efficiently and collaboratively shares best practices. It’s a move toward redefining how the healthcare industry can deliver the highest levels of patient safety and quality care. 

The Benefits of Accreditation 360   

In our view, this overhaul brings much-needed relief. It offers a range of benefits. 

What feels promising about this shift: 

• Cuts 50% of existing standards, reducing redundancy and lowering regulatory burden 

• Focuses more on outcomes and performance metrics and less on box-checking 

• Simplifies survey preparation for overburdened clinical and administrative teams 

• Incorporates the expertise of frontline clinicians and administrators 

Why this matters for care delivery:  

• Replaces legacy structure-and-process reviews with meaningful and measurable improvement 

• Leverages real-time data and benchmarking tools 

• Reflects realities of today’s, tech-enabled care delivery environments 

Promise of a Smarter, Stronger Accreditation Approach 

Accreditation 360 feels like a move from punitive inspection to proactive partnership. That’s in part because it’s designed and led by executives with real-world healthcare experience and encourages continuous feedback loops and the sharing of best practices.  

A recent LinkedIn post from Jonathan Perlin, president and CEO of The Joint Commission, signals a more agile and strategic future:  

“Supporting clinicians and healthcare systems is at the heart of Accreditation 360, which is why this approach is one that’s rooted in collaboration, informed by frontline voices, and tailored to today’s complexities. This is an accreditation model that upholds the public trust and elevates continuous improvement.”     

What Hospitals Should Watch For 

While navigating the transition period, you’ll likely find your team needs time to adjust and interpret how streamlined standards affect your existing quality and compliance strategies. Keep in mind that: 

• Performance still matters. Fewer standards don’t equate to lower expectations.  

• Variability may emerge. Surveyors may apply the new standards differently in the early rollout phase. 

• Transitioning takes time. Organizations may experience growing pains as TJC continues to educate and calibrate survey teams. 

We’re Ready Now 

Whether this change feels like a welcome shift or raises new questions for your organization, we want you to know that HealthStream is ready.  

Our solutions have been shaped by the same priorities as Accreditation 360. We believe performance, not paperwork, is what truly drives better care. From competency development to safety education and quality improvement, our programs are designed to support continuous readiness and deliver the insights organizations need to move forward with confidence.