Example Documentation Library

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Selecting Documentation for Accreditation

PHAB’s Standards and Measures, Version 1.0 includes required documentation that local health departments (LHDs) must submit in order to meet each measure.

PHAB's National Public Health Department Accreditation Documentation Guidance provides general guidance for health departments to consider when selecting the specific documentation they will submit to PHAB, including the general documentation policies below:

No draft documents will be accepted for review by PHAB.
All documentation must be in effect and in use at the time that they are submitted to PHAB.
Documents must be submitted to PHAB electronically. Hard copies of documents must be scanned into an electronic format for submission. PHAB will not accept hard copies of any documentation, either with documentation submission or at the site visit. In order for documentation to be considered by site visitors it must be in an electronic format and included in the health department’s record of documentation in the e-PHAB system.
A PDF version of all documentation is preferred. If a document is not a PDF, it should be in a commonly used program such as Word, Excel, or PowerPoint.
Documents created using health department-specific software, special graphics, or other program not commonly used, will not be accepted.
In many cases, a measure is demonstrated only once, at a central point in the health department. Examples of these types of documentation requirements include department-wide policies (such as human resource policies), procedures, and plans. In these cases the requirement is for a specific, central document, rather than for examples.
Where documentation requires examples, health departments must submit two examples, unless otherwise noted in the list of required documentation or the guidance.
Health departments are encouraged to provide narrative that describes how the submitted document relates to and meets the requirement. Text boxes will be provided by e-PHAB for health departments to include descriptions and explanations.
Health departments must comply with e-PHAB electronic submission requirements and processes.

Example Documentation

NACCHO has collected examples of documents LHDs have selected to submit to PHAB. These examples are organized by measure in the websites below.

Domain 1: Conduct and disseminate assessments focused on population health status
Domain 2: Investigate health problems and environmental public health hazards to protect the community
Domain 3: Inform and educate about public health issues and function
Domain 4: Engage with the community to identify and address health problems
Domain 5: Develop public health policies and plans
Domain 6: Enforce public health laws
Domain 7: Promote strategies to improve access to healthcare services
Domain 8: Maintain a competent public health workforce
Domain 9: Evaluate and continuously improve processes, programs, and interventions
Domain 10: Contribute to and apply the evidence base of public health
Domain 11: Maintain administrative and management capacity
Domain 12: Maintain capacity to engage the public health governing entity

The examples listed on these websites are intended to assist LHDs in selecting documentation and to serve as a reference when developing documents to meet accreditation standards and measures. They are NOT intended to serve as templates where agency and partner names can be replaced and the document used again.

No health department has yet received accreditation status or an indication of the likelihood of accreditation status. Therefore the example documentation does not reflect items that have officially been approved by PHAB for the purposes of meeting a standard or measure.

Submit Your Documentation to NACCHO

If your LHD is preparing for accreditation and has identified high-quality documentation to submit to PHAB, please consider submitting it to NACCHO to help other LHDs in selecting their documentation.

To submit documentation to be considered for posting, please send the document via e-mail to accreditprep@naccho.org with the following information:

Health department name
Name and e-mail of point of contact
PHAB standard and measure number
If you are submitting documentation that you submitted to an accreditation/standards program other than PHAB, please note the program and link to the full set of standards and measures
Clarification on whether de-identification of the health department is desired
Brief justification as to why the documentation should be posted

NACCHO staff will review your submission and inform you if your document will be posted as soon as possible.