LCHD maintains national accreditation status through Public Health Accreditation Board

LINCOLN COUNTY – The Lincoln County Health Department (LCHD) last month announced that it successfully completed a review process to maintain national accreditation status through the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB).

A release from LCHD said that in maintaining its accreditation status for another five years, the department has “demonstrated that it meets PHAB’s quality standards and measures and has the capacity to continue to evolve, improve and advance to continue improving the health of the residents of Lincoln County.”

LCHD said the PHAB works to advance and transform public health practice by championing performance improvement, strong infrastructure and innovation.

“PHAB’s accreditation program, which receives support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), sets standards against which the nation’s governmental public health departments can continuously improve the quality of their services and performance,” LCHD stated.

“We are pleased to again be recognized by PHAB for achieving national standards that foster effectiveness and promote continuous quality improvement," said Shelley Cohrs, LCHD Director/Health Officer. “We hope this announcement will reassure our community, partners, funders and elected officials that the services we provide are as responsive as possible to the needs of our community.

LCHD said it first achieved national accreditation status through PHAB in Sept. 2017, after undergoing a rigorous, multi-faceted, peer-reviewed assessment process to ensure it met a set of quality standards and measures.

The reaccreditation announcement “goes a step further by demonstrating that LCHD has the capacity to become increasingly effective at improving the health of the community,” according to the department.

"We are pleased to see LCHD, along with many others, successfully maintaining their five-year PHAB accreditation," said PHAB President and CEO Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, MD, MPH, FACEP. "This demonstrates that accreditation is not just a one-time achievement, but an ongoing commitment to excellence. By maintaining accreditation, these health departments reaffirm their dedication to continuous improvement and community health."