ICAPHE accreditation is far more than a stamp of approval. It is part of the Quality Assurance and Improvement process and the ongoing journey of development of our Schools and Programmes.

1. Self-Evaluation. The process begins with a holistic and inclusive introspective self-evaluation of activities, processes and systems. The Self-Evaluation is based on a series of criteria which provide the applicant with a framework to institutionalise reflection and analyse existing thinking and practices.
2. External Review. The second stage consists of independent reviewers assessing the Programme through analysis of the self-evaluation and meetings with key stakeholders. Their evaluation provides an objective perspective on the Programme’s quality but also where improvements might be sought.
3. Formative Feedback from Reviewers. As part of the external review, reviewers provide constructive feedback on the programme’s strengths and areas for development. This feedback helps support Programmes in areas in which they are doing well, as well as providing formative and objective advice for potential actions in areas that may require attention. The advice comes in the form of recommendations or conditions.
4. Recommendations and Action Plans. Specific conditions and / or recommendations are provided with the objective of enhancing the Programme. These form the basis of action plans which can be used in progress reports.
5. Implementation Phase. The Programme puts the agreed-upon action plans into practice, addressing the conditions and/or recommendations. (See below)
6. Follow-Up Reporting. As part of the ongoing improvement activities, the Programme submits a follow-up report to demonstrate progress on the action plans. This report allows reviewers to assess whether the conditions and/or recommended improvements have been successfully integrated into the Programme or what challenges remain.

Additional Assistance

In addition to the above processes, there is also an optional meeting available with the reviewers at the end of the review to informally discuss potential areas for further development. This further review offers an in-depth objective view of the Programme that can be fed back into developmental aspirations.

Quality Review and Progress Processes in action

ICAPHE accreditation is a formative model designed to help Programmes improve over the longer term, so it is in the interest of the Programme that accreditation be used as a tool to support progress. It is important to distinguish between recommendations and conditions. In the case of Conditional Accreditation, the Accreditation Review Panel defines “conditions” that must be implemented for obtaining accreditation. This is different from recommendations which do not have a mandatory nature.

We strongly advise that the Programme undertake a small feasibility study and needs assessment to ensure that the recommendations are practical and suit its needs prior to accepting recommendations to be implemented.

In all cases, each review recommendation or condition made should be addressed and reported back on to ICAPHE. The system used is found in the table below. It consists of identifying actions, indicators for success, as well as persons responsible and timeframes. Follow-up reporting will vary depending on the accreditation decision.

 

Condition/Recommendation	Action to take	Completion date	Actioned by	Indicator
Condition or recommendation made by the review team	Action taken as result of condition or recommendation	Date for action to be completed	Persons or group responsible to undertake action	Indicator for success (KPI)

  Table 1: Action plan outline for reporting