Hackensack Meridian Health, New Jersey’s largest and most comprehensive health network, is proud to announce that Raritan Bay Medical Center in Perth Amboy has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval® for Advanced Certification in Perinatal Care (ACPC) by demonstrating exceptional standards and outcomes in the care of infants and mothers. The Gold Seal is a symbol of quality that reflects a health care organization’s commitment to providing safe and quality patient care.
Raritan Bay Medical Center joins Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, and Hackensack University Medical Center, which in 2023, became the first hospital to receive the honor. At the time, the accreditation in Advanced Perinatal Care was a newly created Joint Commission accreditation.
The certification recognizes Raritan Bay Medical Center’s efforts to achieve integrated, coordinated, and patient-centered prenatal through postpartum care, including both complicated and uncomplicated pregnancies. The certification uses standards, guidelines and The Joint Commission’s perinatal care measure set for managing and monitoring aspects of perinatal care that are critical to improving and maintaining the health of newborns and their mothers.
Just as Hackensack University Medical Center and Riverview Medical Center, Raritan Bay Medical Center underwent a rigorous, onsite review. During the visit, a team of Joint Commission reviewers evaluated compliance with related certification standards. Joint Commission standards are developed in consultation with health care experts and providers, measurement experts and patients. The reviewers also conducted onsite observations and interviews.
"Earning the Joint Commission's Advanced Certification in Perinatal Care is a significant recognition of our team's profound commitment to the health and safety of mothers and their newborns,” said Patricia Carroll, president and chief hospital executive of Raritan Bay Medical Center. “This prestigious, national achievement validates our dedication to providing integrated, coordinated, and patient-centered care for every family we serve. I am incredibly proud of our entire perinatal team, whose clinical excellence and compassionate approach made this certification possible."
“Advanced Certification in Perinatal Care recognizes health care organizations committed to fostering continuous improvement in patient safety and quality of care,” says Deborah Ryan, MS, RN, interim executive vice president, Accreditation and Certification Operations, The Joint Commission. “We commend Raritan Bay Medical Center for using certification to reduce variation in its clinical processes and to strengthen its program structure and management framework for newborns and their mothers.”
Hackensack Meridian Health continues to set the standard for excellence in maternal health in the communities it serves.