The author of the article provides several standpoints on why accreditation is helpful and needed for nursing schools. Collins (1997) notes that accreditation can be a sign of high-quality standards of the school and can also promote these standards. Accreditation can sustain quality programs or develop new ones and maintain new and positive trends in education.
It is important to remember that accreditation agencies vary from state to state. When reviewing a school, accreditation agencies usually look for minimum criteria to be met. However, accreditation to faculty includes reports, meetings, review of programs, and even changes in curricula. Accreditation activities, notice the author, do not take place as often as they should. Renewal of approval of nursing programs is based on the annual reports, examination results, self-study, survey visits, or other criteria, depending on a state. The author points out that accreditation agencies should focus on content, practice knowledge, performance outcomes, and quality of the program (Collins, 1997). The need for advanced certification is inevitable because it will set higher quality standards for future nurses and nursing programs.
The difference between the governmental/state and quasi-governmental agencies is that the latter, although created by the government for achieving some governmental aims, are considered as independent organizations whose workers work in a private sector. Moreover, they may have a public function, but their funds can consist of taxes. It means that although they are treated as independent organizations, they are nevertheless founded by the government (Official Guide to Government Information and Services, n.d.). The quasi-governmental organizations need to make the information about their funds transparent, although they are allowed to charge their customers with fees.
References
Collins, M. (1997). Issues of accreditation: A dean’s perspective. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 2(3), 1-5.
Official Guide to Government Information and Services. (n.d.). U.S. government and quasi-governmental organizations. Web.