Oct. 14, 2009 | The groundbreaking KIDS FIRST program at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) has earned the highest level of accreditation awarded through an internationally recognized accrediting body.

KIDS FIRST, a program of the UAMS Department of Pediatrics, has 11 sites statewide that provide services to more than 700 children with special health care needs and their families.

The three-year accreditation was awarded by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) International. CARF is an independent, nonprofit accrediting body founded in 1966 whose mission is to promote the quality, value, and optimal outcomes of services through a consultative accreditation process that centers on enhancing the lives of the persons served.

“This accreditation decision represents the highest level of accreditation that can be awarded and shows our organization’s conformance to the CARF standards,” said Carolyn Marsh, KIDS FIRST administrator. “An organization receiving a three-year accreditation has put itself through a rigorous peer review process and has demonstrated to a team of surveyors during an on-site visit that its programs and services are of the highest measurable and accountable quality.”

CARF International announced that KIDS FIRST has been accredited for a period of three years for its Home and Community Based Rehabilitation (Children and Adolescents) and Outpatient Treatment: Family Services (Children and Adolescents). This is the first time that KIDS FIRST has applied to the international accrediting body that required a three-day survey and included all 11 clinics statewide.

The accreditation follows a survey of compliance with the CARF Behavioral Health and Child and Youth Services Standards. During the survey, four CARF surveyors visited all sites and talked with patient families and other stakeholders to determine their satisfaction with services received.

KIDS FIRST is the only organization in Arkansas accredited in both Home and Community Based Services and Outpatient Treatment Services. It has clinics in Little Rock, Lowell, Fort Smith, Morrilton, Magnolia, Mt. View, Newport, Pine Bluff, Pocahontas, Searcy and Warren.

CARF establishes consumer-focused standards to help organizations measure and improve the quality of their programs and services.