Nairobi — For 64 years, the Aga Khan University Hospital continues to set the standard for comprehensive healthcare and modern medical education in East Africa.
The hospital that prides itself in offering quality services was on July 4, 2022, accredited for the fourth time by the Joint Commission International (JCI), the recognized global leader in health quality standards.
The US-based JCI is an independent not-for-profit organisation that accredits and certifies health care organisations globally.
"Quality is not just an accident. It can never be an accident. It is a process. It has to be inbuilt. It has to be in your DNA," the hospital's Chief Executive Officer Rashid Khalani said.
The re-accreditation was a culmination of a rigorous audit process based on a review of the hospital's compliance with 291 standards and 1,199 measurable elements.
It involves the analysis of healthcare delivery processes and documentation including infection control, standards of physician practice, patient experience, medication management, the safety of care and the qualifications and competencies of staff and physicians.
"We believe in quality services. We believe that what is critical to a patient is the clinical outcome and some credibility".
"Therefore, we have benchmarked ourselves our processes our standards our people against the best in the world. Therefore, when the patient comes to us, they have the confidence that they will get the best quality of care. Therefore, that is what it means for us and it is very close to our hearts," Khalani said.
The JCI accredited the Hospital first in July 2013 becoming the first hospital in East Africa to receive the coveted accreditation. The Commission feted the Hospital again in 2016 and 2019.
Khalani underscored that the hospital has committed over the years not to compromise its quality of services.
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"One thing comes to mind is quality and that's what we want that when people talk about Aga Khan University Hospital. Quality should be the first thing that comes to people's mind when they think about the hospital," he said.
The Hospital is renowned in providing high-quality care and treatment based on international standards for full spectrum of heart and cancer conditions.
The centre located at the Jimmy Sayani Building consists of five operating theatres, twenty-three intensive care beds (including a cardiotherapic intensive care unit) and separate coronary intensive care unit, neonatal intensive care unit and two radiation therapy units for cancer treatment.
With the external validation, the Hospital is working on positioning itself to become a medical tourism hub in the region.
The Hospital in February 2020, made the headline after performing the first successful penile implant surgery procedure to treat erectile dysfunction.
