http://www.longwoods.com/articles/images/news-CCHSA-Italy.htm
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/December2007/07/c8855.html
http://www.cchsa-ccass.ca/default.aspx?page=303

Canadian Health Accreditation Model Celebrated in Italy

December 7, 2007

(Ottawa, Canada) The international division of the Canadian Council on
Health Services Accreditation (CCHSA) is celebrating a $2 million agreement
with the Agenzia Regionale Socio Sanitaria del Veneto (ARSS) today in
Treviso, Italy. CCHSA has been commissioned to develop and implement an
accreditation "program of excellence" for the Veneto Region in northern
Italy. The milestone was commemorated with the participation of the Ministry
of Health and representatives from the International Society for Quality in
Health Care (ISQua).
This agreement is the most recent collaboration between CCHSA International
and the region, a partnership which began five years ago with the
development of accreditation services for the Oderzo and Villorba districts
and the Ca' Foncello Hospital in Treviso, and the San Martino Hospital in
Belluno. "Our work with CCHSA is absolutely essential to our goal of
achieving excellence in health care, and is the latest in a number of
collaborative projects we have undertaken with CCHSA in the region. CCHSA
has a proven track record in guiding health services to achieve high quality
care through standards of excellence which are recognized internationally,"
said Dr. F. Antonio Compostella, Director of the Agenzia Regionale Socio
Sanitaria del Veneto (ARSS).

CCHSA International will work with local project partners, Sistemi
Organizzazione e Gestione Servizi Sociali Sanitaria (SOGESS) and
Associazione Italiana per il Miglioramento della Qualità e per
l'Accreditamento (AMIQA), in this new initiative which will see the
development of a customized accreditation program that promotes excellence
and quality in health services in five local health systems across the
Veneto region: Alto Vicentino, Pieve di Soligo, Dolo e Mirano, Verona, and
Rovigo. The program will cover primary, acute, long-term and home care, as
well as public health, mental health and substance abuse.

"This most recent project is another example of how countries worldwide are
increasingly recognizing the value of accreditation for assessing and
improving the quality of their health services. We are very excited to be
working with our partners in Italy," said Wendy Nicklin, President and CEO,
Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation. Italy is one of many
countries throughout the world - including France, Ireland, Serbia, Saudi
Arabia, and Brazil among others - that have turned to CCHSA's Canadian
accreditation model for guidance and expertise.

CCHSA (www.cchsa-ccass.ca) is a non-for-profit, independent organization
that provides national and international health and social service
organizations with a voluntary, external peer review to assess the quality
of their services based on standards of excellence. CCHSA's programs and
guidance have been helping organizations strive for excellence for close to
50 years.

- 30 -

Contacts
Canada: Liane Craig, Director of Strategic Communications, Canadian Council
on Health Services Accreditation CCHSA. Liane.Craig@...
613 738 3800 ext 301

Italy: Cinzia Bon, ARSS, Agenzia Regionale Socio Sanitaria del Veneto (ARSS)
Cinzia.Bon@...