National Commission on Correctional Health Care
Encyclopedia
The National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC)[www.ncchc.org] is an independent, non-profit organization
dedicated to improving the standard of care
in the field of correctional health care
in the United States
. "With support from the major national organizations representing the fields of health, law and corrections
, the National Commission on Correctional Health Care is committed to improving the quality of health care
in jails, prisons, and juvenile confinement facilities."
"NCCHC's origins date to the early 1970s
, when an American Medical Association
study of jails found inadequate, disorganized health services and a lack of national standards. In collaboration with other organizations, the AMA established a program that in the early 1980s became the NCCHC, which is now supported by the major national organizations representing the fields of health, law, and corrections. It sets standards, provides education and technical assistance, and certifies correctional health professionals. NCCHC’s leadership in setting standards for health services and improving health care in correctional facilities is widely recognized, affecting over 11 million people who are released from correctional facilities each year. The standards have helped the nation’s correctional and detention facilities improve the health of their inmates and the communities to which they return; increase the efficiency of their health services delivery; and strengthen their organizational effectiveness."
2. http://www.ncchc.org. National Commission on Correctional Health Care website. Accessed on December 11, 2008
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
dedicated to improving the standard of care
Standard of care
In tort law, the standard of care is the degree of prudence and caution required of an individual who is under a duty of care.The requirements of the standard are closely dependent on circumstances. Whether the standard of care has been breached is determined by the trier of fact, and is usually...
in the field of correctional health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. "With support from the major national organizations representing the fields of health, law and corrections
Corrections
In criminal justice, particularly in North America, correction, corrections, and correctional, are umbrella terms describing a variety of functions typically carried out by government agencies and involving the punishment, treatment, and supervision of persons who have been convicted of crimes....
, the National Commission on Correctional Health Care is committed to improving the quality of health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
in jails, prisons, and juvenile confinement facilities."
"NCCHC's origins date to the early 1970s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
, when an American Medical Association
American Medical Association
The American Medical Association , founded in 1847 and incorporated in 1897, is the largest association of medical doctors and medical students in the United States.-Scope and operations:...
study of jails found inadequate, disorganized health services and a lack of national standards. In collaboration with other organizations, the AMA established a program that in the early 1980s became the NCCHC, which is now supported by the major national organizations representing the fields of health, law, and corrections. It sets standards, provides education and technical assistance, and certifies correctional health professionals. NCCHC’s leadership in setting standards for health services and improving health care in correctional facilities is widely recognized, affecting over 11 million people who are released from correctional facilities each year. The standards have helped the nation’s correctional and detention facilities improve the health of their inmates and the communities to which they return; increase the efficiency of their health services delivery; and strengthen their organizational effectiveness."
Footnotes
1. http://www.ncchc.org. National Commission on Correctional Health Care website. Accessed on December 11, 20082. http://www.ncchc.org. National Commission on Correctional Health Care website. Accessed on December 11, 2008