Leading expatriate health insurer, Bupa International, has developed a quality assurance programme for its 7,500 recognised providers worldwide with the assistance of Joint Commission International (JCI), the world's leading international healthcare accreditation body. The programme will reassure Bupa International customers that they have access to the highest level of treatment all over the world.
Developed by clinical staff from Bupa International and expert consultants from JCI, each hospital will receive a set of assessment tools based on internationally recognised standards. Using these tools, hospitals can assess their medical facilities and clinical quality, including patient safety, clinical services, hospital management and staff, and the general environment and equipment. This will give Bupa International in-depth knowledge of each hospital it works with, allowing it to provide its customers with access to the best treatment no matter where they are in the world.
Bupa International's medical director, Dr Sneh Khemka, said:We're excited to be working with JCI in developing our quality assurance programme. At Bupa International, we put quality at the heart of everything we do. This programme differs from those used by many health insurers because we use medical expertise to set standards for those hospitals and facilities that we promote to our customers, enabling us to select hospitals primarily according to the hospital's ability to provide the right treatment and quality of care, not simply on the basis of cost. The tools also help us to direct medical evacuations to the most appropriate facility. Our collaboration with JCI means that we can support hospitals in their continual quality improvement initiatives, ensuring standards improve further.
Sherry Kaufield, executive director of International Services at JCI, said:We are very pleased to work with Bupa International on this important initiative. Bupa's commitment to providing patients the very best care wherever they are in the world, matches the mission of JCI. We look forward to a long-term collaborative relationship with Bupa.
Headquartered in Brighton, Bupa International has been providing expatriate health insurance for some of the world's largest companies since 1971. It offers access to more than 200,000 medical providers worldwide and can settle bills directly with over 7,500 hospitals and clinics. Customers also have access to Bupa International's multi-lingual doctors and advisers - unique among private medical insurers - who arrange hundreds of emergency evacuations and repatriations each year and offer medical advice and guidance, 24 hours a day.
JCI is the largest international healthcare accrediting body and leads the way in setting quality standards. In the past 10 years JCI has awarded accreditation to over 300 healthcare facilities in 39 countries and continues to work with healthcare experts from around the world, providing guidance on key patient safety and quality issues. JCI has been working with healthcare facilities, ministries of health and global organisations in over 90 countries since 1994.
More information can be found at www.bupa-intl.com.
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Bupa's purpose is to help people lead longer, healthier, happier lives. A leading international healthcare group, we offer personal and company health insurance, run care homes for older people and hospitals, and provide workplace health services, health assessments and chronic disease management services, including health coaching, and home healthcare.
With no shareholders, we invest our profits to provide more and better healthcare. We are committed to making quality, patient-centred, affordable healthcare more accessible in the areas of wellness, chronic disease management and ageing.
Employing nearly 52,000 people, Bupa has operations around the world, principally in the UK, Australia, Spain, New Zealand and the USA, as well as Hong Kong, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, India, China and across Latin America.
For more information, visit www.bupa.com.
