Accréditation Sans Frontières

International Accreditation of Healthcare Facilities


Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you want to know
about ASF accreditation.

Hospitals, payers, donors, patients and surveyors all ask different questions. We have tried to answer them honestly below. If something is missing, write to us.

Write to us

Membership & pricing

From €490/month for hospitals up to 200 beds. Annual plan: 11 months for the price of 12. Survey fee: €3,500 for members / €6,000 for non-members. Travel at cost. Zero per diem. Full pricing →

Everything: quality coordinator, baseline assessment, core indicators, incident reporting, patient council, ombudsman, safe pathways, staff safety survey, monthly report, training + Training Passport, document toolkit, mock survey, accreditation pathway, day-one digital recognition, verified training providers, verified suppliers, digital presence, scientific writing support, annual report in four formats, and international patient care listing. Full breakdown →

Approximately 12 months to first award. Month 1: baseline + mock survey. Month 2: document toolkit. Month 3: first quarterly session + patient council. Months 4–11: continuous monitoring. Month 12: accreditation survey and award.

The standard membership is designed for hospitals up to 200 beds. Larger hospitals and ambulatory clinics are quoted individually — write to us for a tailored proposal. Patient Voice is available as a standalone service for any facility regardless of size.

ASF standards are developed with reference to internationally recognised principles for external evaluation. The programme is designed for recognition by governments, insurers, donors and universities in countries in transition. ASF aligns formally with Accreditation Canada’s Qmentum framework.

The accreditation process

Yes — for quarterly working sessions and the annual survey. Monthly monitoring is remote and takes approximately three hours of existing staff time. No visit is required for routine monthly contact.

Yes. Three-tier process: (1) extended deadline + additional support, (2) formal notice to governing body + patient council, (3) certificate suspension + public register update. Immediate danger triggers immediate action, bypassing stages 1 and 2.

“Never below baseline, always improving.” Every member’s starting point is documented and protected at the start of the programme. Sustained deterioration triggers review. More incident reports equal more learning — they are scored upward, not downward.

The on-site survey validates twelve months of monitored practice. The survey is conducted by the independent Evaluation branch — structurally separate from the Technical Support branch that coaches the facility. The accreditation decision and result are published publicly on the ASF register.

Patient Voice & ombudsman

A standalone independent patient council and neutral ombudsman service. A QR code placed in your wards and reception goes directly to ASF — never to the hospital. Written response to every submission. Monthly coded report. Available to any hospital; ASF membership is not required. Learn more →

Every complaint — paper, online, or social media — reaches ASF first. Acknowledged in writing within two working days, substantive response within five. ASF mediates, takes neither side, and closes every case in writing.

Only in the monthly coded report — not raw submissions. Anonymity is preserved if the patient requests it. The hospital never sees the QR-code submission before ASF does.

For payers, donors & partners

It does not replace your audit rights — it eliminates the need to exercise them routinely. Continuous monthly monitoring means quality data is always current. Your right to audit remains; your audit burden decreases. More for payers →

Yes. Quarterly monitoring reports in results-framework language: indicators, incident trends, council activity, complaint resolution rates — ready to go into your M&E system without translation. We have experience with Global Fund, USAID-aligned and EU-funded programme environments.

Yes. Corporations, universities, donors and humanitarian organisations can sponsor ASF membership for a facility. You pay the fee and receive quality-assurance reporting. The facility keeps all membership benefits. Write to us →

For surveyors

ASF surveyors are practising health professionals with quality or management experience. Training is provided. You are deployed in your region of expertise. Surveying is part-time and compatible with your primary role. Surveyor programme →

A structured induction covering ASF standards, survey methodology, and the three-tier alert system. Ongoing CPD through ASF Academy. All surveyor activity is logged in your Training Passport.

Still have a question?
Write to us. We reply in writing within three working days.

Write to ASF
Appeals & governance

If you wish to appeal an accreditation decision, ASF operates a formal written appeals process. Any facility may appeal on procedural grounds within 30 days of the decision. Appeals are reviewed by an independent panel within 30 days of submission.

Read the full appeals process →

Evidence base

The ASF standards are grounded in peer-reviewed literature from WHO, Lancet, BMJ, JAMA, and ISQua. Our full references page lists every source behind each quality domain.

View evidence base →

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