Identifying the Executive Challenges of the New Generation of Hospital Accreditation in Iran

Given that hospitals are one of the pillars of the health system, reforming the health system is not possible without improving the performance of hospitals. Accreditation is a regular assessment of hospitals that emphasizes on continuous quality improvement and patient safety. This study aimed to identify the challenges of the new generation of hospital accreditation using the Three-Branch Model and proposing solutions to improve its effectiveness.

This mixed exploratory research was conducted using a targeted sampling method of 20 semi-structured interviews along with a content analysis approach. As a result, an initial model was designed. Later, the initial model was modified using the Delphi technique, which was also approved by experts. In order to test the model, a researcher-made questionnaire was distributed among 384 hospital staff based on Morganchr('39')s table using stratified quota sampling method. Data were analyzed by confirmatory factor analysis using Smart PlS 3 software.

After analyzing and combining, the data were categorized under 31 basic codes, 5 concepts, and 3 main categories by Three-branch Model. The main codes included behavioral challenges, structural challenges, and contextual challenges.

According to the findings, the main challenge was related to the behavioral category followed by the structural category, which indiates that the current focus is on intra-organizational issues. Therefore, it can be said that the contextual challenges have received less attention.