Before the initial survey, the institution must do which of the following?

• A. demonstrate 1 year of compliance with the standards.
• B. accrue 5 years of data
• C. have 10 affiliated clinics
• D. publish annual reports

Answer: (A)

Accreditation surveys look for ongoing adherence to standards, so before the initial site visit the program must show one full year of compliant operation. That year-long period demonstrates that the program has stable processes, such as documented policies, routine data collection on performance measures, and active quality improvement efforts, and that these practices are consistently applied—not just set up to pass a one-time check. By documenting and sustaining compliance over that year, the program proves it can meet the standards in everyday operation, which is what the survey is meant to verify. The other options aren’t required prerequisites for the first survey: longer data histories aren’t needed yet, the number of affiliated clinics isn’t the gating factor, and publishing annual reports isn’t the formal prerequisite for the initial survey.