Surveyor Information
Survey Team Responsibilities
The primary responsibilities of the survey team are to:
- Conduct a comprehensive review of the supervision, training and support received by Trainee Medical Officers as the facility under consideration.
- Report in a relevant, timely and accurate manner enough information for the Accreditation Subcommittee to make a well informed decision on the accreditation status of the facility.
- Act in a courteous, professional and non-judgemental manner as a representative of SA IMET.
Lead Surveyor — a specially trained leader of the Survey Team, ultimately responsible for the writing, collation and review of the Accreditation Report to be presented to the Accreditation Subcommittee.
Surveyor — is an individual trained in all aspects of the Accreditation Program who acts on behalf of SA IMET to visit a facility and assess its compliance with the Standards.
Becoming a Surveyor
Surveyors may be recruited in one of the following ways:
- Nomination by their professional body or organisation
- Invitation from SA IMET
Composition of a Survey Team
The survey team will usually comprise of at least three to four people, who may represent the following groups:
- Directors of Clinical Training
- Clinicians
- Trainee Medical Officers
- Medical Education
- Medical Administrators
The composition of a survey team will depend on the size and role of the facility and the program it provides. Special expertise may be sought if there are particular problems which have been identified prior to the accreditation visit.
Ethical Issues and Confidentiality
Information gathered in relation to an accreditation visit must be treated by the survey team and external surveyors in confidence.
Matters concerning accreditation should only be discussed with the facility personnel concerned, Accreditation Subcommittee members and the Chief Executive Officer of the health region.
Team members should also treat in confidence all information provided by other team members during the review.
Surveyors and members of the Accreditation Subcommittee are required to complete and sign a Confidentiality Agreement prior to undertaking any accreditation functions on behalf of SA IMET.
Credentialing of Surveyors
In order to ensure an open and transparent accreditation system, surveyors need to be equipped with the necessary skills and experiences. The below guidelines seek to maintain a high calibre of assessors and thereby ensuring the SA IMET accreditation system continues to work at a consistently high level:
- All surveyors will be assessed by an approved lead surveyor.
- Surveyors will observe a survey prior to being assessed.
- Surveyors will notify SA IMET if they feel there could be a potential conflict of interest.
- Surveyors will provide feedback and advice to facilities on how to improve the education and training of junior doctors.
- Surveyors will provide advice to SA IMET on broader issues which might emerge from the survey and which are relevant to the education and training for junior doctors.
- Lead surveyors are responsible for leadership and direction of each survey, assessment of observers and the finalisation of each report.
- Lead surveyors are responsible for offering advice to the Accreditation Subcommittee and the Appeals Committee regarding the accreditation status of a facility, unit and department.
- Lead surveyors must complete a sufficient number of surveys per annum to maintain their lead status.
Surveyor Guide
The SA IMET Surveyor Guide provides survey teams with a clear outline of their role and with the necessary information and tools to conduct a comprehensive Accreditation review.
Useful Links
Enquiries
For all Accreditation enquires email SAIMETAccreditation@health.sa.gov.au.