ASSURING HOSPITAL STANDARDS: THE INTRODUCTION OF HOSPITAL ACCREDITATION IN AUSTRALIA
: The system of hospital accreditation that has developed in Australia involves a quasi non-government organization, the Australian Council on Hospital Standards (ACHS), “surveying” hospitals and issuing certificates to those which meet published standards. The surveying process has the potential to influence the internal hospital balance of power between doctors and the hospital administration, and to place additional demands on statutory health authorities. The ACHS was set up formally in 1977 following a protracted process of discussion, research and inter-organizational conflict that had its origins in proposals framed in the 1920s. The roles played by the sponsors of accreditation (the Australian Medical Association and the Australian Hospital Association) and by its detractors, especially the Health Commission of New South Wales, are explained using concepts developed in theories of inter-organizational relations.