Accreditation is one tool, which can be used to improve safety and quality in a dental practice. It is a way of verifying

• actions are being taken
• system data and information is being used to inform activity and
• safety and quality improvement is being achieved.

Accreditation is recognised as an important driver for safety and quality improvement.

What is accreditation?

Accreditation is independent recognition that the dental practice meets the requirements of defined criteria or standards. This is an recognised evaluation process used to assess the quality of care and services provided in a range of areas including oral health care.

About Us

Board of Directors

• To supervise the functioning of the accreditation body.
• To convene meetings.
• To make decisions regarding the working of the accreditation body.

Accreditation Committee

Accreditation Committee has drafted the criteria by which an individual’s clinical practice may be measured. The accreditation committee

• Recommends to board about grant of accreditation or otherwise based on evaluation of assessment reports and other relevant information.

Accreditation Committee considers a competent practitioner is one who applies knowledge, skills, attitudes, communication and judgement to the delivery of appropriate oral health care in accordance with the scope of practice within which they are registered.

• Approves the major changes in the Scope of Accreditation including enhancement and reduction, in respect of accredited dental clinics.
• Recommends to the board on launching of new initiatives.

IDA's Accreditation Committee is as an important driver for safety and quality improvement. This committee assures that the oral healthcare provided in dental clinics meets or exceeds existing standards in regard to quality, quantity, appropriateness, need, and safety. However, IDA cannot guarantee through quality assurance reviews that standards of care are being met on a patientbypatient, procedure-byprocedure or day-by-day basis.

Accreditation awards

Dental practices that meet the requirements in the IDA Standards will be issued an award specifying that it is: ‘Accredited to the IDA Standards 1-6’. In addition, awards will include:

• The period of accreditation (date awarded and expiry date)
• The name of the dental practice
• A description of the services covered by the award.

Accreditation Committee

Technical committee drafts complete set of standards for evaluation of dental facility for grant of accreditation. The standards provide framework for quality assurance and quality improvement for dental practice. The standards focus on patient safety and quality of care. The standards are equally applicable to dental practice in the government as well as in the private sector.

• Drafting of accreditation standards and guidance documents.
• Periodic review of standards.

This helps serve the oral health care needs of the public through the development and administration of standards that foster continuous quality improvement. The Committee's primary aim is to protect the public from harm and to improve the quality of care provided. The standards are integral to the accreditation process as they determine how and against what an organisation’s performance will be assessed. These have been designed for use by all dental practices as part of their internal quality assurance mechanisms or as part of an external accreditation process.

What is IDA's Accreditation Committee ?

The IDA Accreditation Technical Committee is an independent national statutory authority. The role of the committee is to lead and coordinate improvements in safety and quality in health care across India. As part of this role, the Technical Committee has developed and will maintain the standards.

Appeals Committee

The Appeal Committee addresses appeals made by the dental clinics against any adverse decision regarding accreditation taken by the IDA accreditation body. The adverse decisions may relate to the following:

• refusal to accept an application,
• refusal to proceed with an assessment,
• corrective action requests,
• changes in accreditation scope,
• decisions to deny, suspend or withdraw accreditation, and
• any other action that impedes the attainment of accreditation.

Appeals process

Appeals Committee have a well established appeals process by which dental practices can appeal assessment decisions.

Appeals Committee

The Inspection Committee will be the authority to conduct site visits. They will be responsible to :

• Conduct the Site Inspection.
• Ensure that the Documented protocols and policies regarding the Infection control, Bio medical waste, Book and Record keeping are followed.
• Ensure that the all the claims made by the Dental Professional regarding the Clinic are Factual.
• The team will Document all their findings and submit to the accreditation Committee.

Assessment and rating scale

Inspection committee when assessing dental practices, will use the following three point rating scale to report accreditation outcomes to the Technical Committee :

• Not Met – the actions required have not been achieved.
• Satisfactorily Met – the actions required have been achieved.
• Met with Merit – in addition to achieving the actions required, measures of good quality and a higher level of achievement are evident. This would mean a culture of safety, evaluation and improvement is evident throughout the dental practice in relation to the action or standard under review.

This rating system can be used to rate individual actions within a Standard and to rate the Standard overall.

Get your practice accredited

Dental Practice Accreditation is awarded to the practice and is location specific. Accreditation is awarded by IDA Accreditation Committee once the practice has submitted evidence demonstrating compliance with IDA's Standards.