In our last article (Nadcap Accreditation Part One: The Basics) we discussed the fundamentals of Nadcap accreditation: what it is, how it works, why we should do it, what will be addressed in the audit, and how we should prepare. Here, we will talk about pre-audits, how to review the audit’s findings, how to analyze the root cause of a major or minor nonconformance, how to apply corrective actions, and what we should do after the audit is complete.
Pre-audits (aka internal audits, self-audits) are commonly misunderstood – they are not a recommended practice but a mandatory one, to be conducted prior to the formal Nadcap audit process. Failure to perform a pre-audit will result in the Performance Review Institute (PRI) auditor reporting a major nonconformance with accreditation standards. Completion of the pre-audit should be done within the 90-day period of the formal audit. This is considered best practice and will give ample time to resolve any issues that come up and to avoid surprises during the formal auditing process.