AAHA Certification: A Higher Standard
On August 25th, Mill Creek Animal Hospital received AAHA accreditation for the fifth time in its history. What does that mean? Are we connoisseurs of one-hit-wonder 80’s bands (“Take On Me”…anyone)? All kidding aside, the answer goes to the very heart of what we strive to achieve each day here at Mill Creek.
AAHA is short for American Animal Hospital Association (http://www.aahanet.org). Established in 1933, AAHA is an organization dedicated to the continual improvement of companion animal veterinary medicine. Fewer than 15% of all veterinary hospitals in the U.S. earn accreditation. Mill Creek Animal Hospital, accredited since 1996, is proud to be the only member hospital in Shawnee and one of only 10 in all of Johnson County.
AAHA is among the leading organizations in developing industry benchmarks and business practice standards for companion animal veterinary facilities. They also offer educational opportunities to companion animal veterinarians by providing publications such as textbooks and scientific journals, as well as providing the opportunity to hear from leading veterinary clinicians and scientists at its various seminars.
Without question, AAHA’s most important activity in promoting excellence in veterinary medicine is its accreditation process. This is the method by which the organization determines which practices will receive its endorsement as being of the highest quality. You know that 100 point inspection a new car goes through before being put on the showroom floor? AAHA accreditation is a little more rigorous than that. To achieve accreditation, a veterinary practice is evaluated by an AAHA certified practice evaluator on over 600 individual standards involving all aspects of day-to-day veterinary practice, including surgery, anesthesia, client service, facilities, patient care, and many, many more. If the practice fails to meet the standard in any one category, it will not be granted accreditation until its deficiencies are corrected. Even when accreditation is achieved, the practice evaluator will meet with practice staff to discuss ways in which its everyday practices and policies can be improved to provide an even higher level of customer and patient care.
AAHA accredited practices can’t rest on their laurels, either. The evaluation process is repeated every three years, and the standards are continually being updated: some are changed, and new ones are added in order to ensure that the standards reflect the constantly evolving nature of the veterinary profession.
As you can see, AAHA accreditation is much like the “Good Housekeeping Seal” for veterinary practices. When you walk into an accredited practice with your pet, you can rest assured that practice is committed to providing you and your pet with the most current veterinary medical and surgical techniques, compassionate care, and quality customer service possible.
We at Mill Creek Animal hospital are very proud of our previous and continued AAHA accreditation. Our hope is that you see it as an assurance that we will always strive to exceed your expectations in every way, each time you walk through the door.