Outline of Departmental Scope of Service

I. Goal of the service

II. Type of patients served — patients’ ages, diagnostic categories

Note: Support services should describe departments/services served — customers, recipients of service

III. Scope and complexity of the patients’ care needs — diagnosis, conditions

IV. Extent to which the level of care/services provided meets the patients’ or customers’ needs direct patient care departments should consider treatments, treatment modalities, procedures, and/or activities provided; support services should consider the work, service, and/or activities provided

V. Appropriateness, clinical necessity, and timeliness of support services provided directly by the organization or through referral contracts

VI. Availability of necessary staff — staffing, hours of operation, specialties, credentials

VII. Standards or guidelines for practice, when available — professional standards, clinical paths, multidisciplinary plans of care, national guidelines, manufacturer’s guidelines, service agreements, state requirements

VIII. Methods used to assess and meet patients’ care needs — policies and procedures approved by the organization’s administration and/or medical staff, case management, team rounds), customer surveys, environmental rounds

Source: Pelling M. Hospital Manager’s Guide to Joint Commission Standards. Forest Grove, OR: Brown-Spath & Associates; 1997.