For Programs

Seeking or Maintaining Accreditation

for AA Education Programs

The ARC-AA works alongside the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) to promote and advance the quality of education programs for anesthesiologist assistants.

As part of our mission to better support anesthesiologist assistants and the patients they serve, we work to provide a clear pathway to accreditation for programs to ensure they meet profession-specific requirements. We provide this support through guidance, resources, and tools uniquely designed to support AA programs seeking and maintaining  accreditation.

Supporting Programs that are Seeking and Maintaining Accreditation

To achieve CAAHEP accreditation through ARC-AA, programs must undergo a thorough review of their education program, including:

  • A comprehensive self-study report documenting how the program meets the CAAHEP Standards and Guidelines
  • Complete review of all supporting materials and program structure
  • A site visit for review of resources and documentation and conversations with the communities of interest
  • A formalized response plan to the site visit findings to ensure compliance with the CAAHEP Standards and Guidelines
Seeking or Maintaining Accreditation

Policies and Procedures Manual

To ensure successful accreditation, ARC-AA has developed a comprehensive Policies and Procedures Manual for Programs to guide your program development, structure, and refinement to meet the standards established by the ARC-AA and CAAHEP.

The ARC-AA Policies and Procedures Manual for Programs works in conjunction with the CAAHEP Policies and Procedures Manual (www.caahep.org). Program directors should keep both manuals accessible on the respective websites for easy reference.

ARC-AA Policies & Procedures Manual CAAHEP Policies & Procedures Manual

GETTING STARTED

Your Path to Program Accreditation

Your Path to Program Accreditation

For any program to qualify for review and eventual accreditation, the program structure, materials, and purposed outcomes must meet CAAHEP Standards and Guidelines. CAAHEP Standards and Guidelines for the Accreditation of Education Programs for the Anesthesiologist Assistant have common elements with discipline-specific requirements for graduates entering the profession.

Standards and Guidelines include:

  • Sponsorship Information
  • Program Goals & Outcomes
  • Program Expectations
  • Roles & Responsibilities
  • Curriculum Requirements
  • Assessment Requirements
  • Fair Practices

CAAHEP Standards & Guidelines

To begin the accreditation process for your anesthesiologist assistant education program, you must complete the Request for Accreditation Services (RAS) Form on the CAAHEP website. This information will be delivered to ARC-AA for review prior to the self-study and site visit processes.

This form requests information like:

  • Profession
  • Institution Information
  • Program Details
  • Contact Info for Program Director/Dean/CEO

Open Form

Each program seeking accreditation must complete the self-study report, documenting how the program meets each of the accreditation standards as outlined in the CAAHEP Standards and Guidelines document for the anesthesiologist assistant. Your self-study report must follow the template provided by ARC-AA. Submission of the self-study report is the first step in beginning the review process.

View Self-Study Report Template View Self-Study Report Template – Appendices

ARC-AA coordinates and conducts a site visit spanning one to two days. The site visit allows the ARC-AA the opportunity to verify the information you submitted in your self-study report in order to further assess your program.

The site visits include:

  • Review of program documentation
  • Review of program resources
  • Conversations with students
  • Conversations with graduates (if applicable)
  • Conversations with faculty, advisory committee members, and others as needed

Effective preparation for the site visit facilitates a streamline review and ensures that your program is adequately prepared. By providing documentation of your processes and answering the site visit team’s questions, you can significantly reduce pre-site visit stressors. Having all potential documents available for review also demonstrates the degree of organization of your program. Whether this is your first site visit or you are a seasoned program director, following our checklist will assist you in your preparation.

Review Site Visit Prep Checklist

Following your site visit, you will receive a report of the site visit team’s findings. You are given an opportunity to respond to the findings before further consideration by ARC-AA.

After your response, the ARC-AA Board of Directors reviews the program’s accreditation record to date, including the program’s response to the site visit to determine the degree of compliance with each accreditation standard. The ARC-AA formulates an accreditation recommendation for the review and action by the CAAHEP Board. In some cases, additional information or clarification may be requested by ARC-AA  before making a recommendation.

When the ARC-AA recommends accreditation to the CAAHEP Board of Directors, the CAAHEP Board will review the accreditation recommendation and program at one of the six yearly meetings (January, March, May, July, September, and November). Letters notifying programs of the CAAHEP Board’s decision are electronically distributed to the President, Dean, and Program Director the week following the meeting.

ARC-AA continues to monitor your program for effective compliance with published criteria. These efforts also include a mandatory annual report that is completed online.

The annual report evaluation requests information on:

  • Clinical Affiliates
  • Program Outcomes
  • Education
  • Enrollment & Retention
  • Credentialing Exam
  • Surveys
  • Resources
  • Demographics

Explore Annual Report User Guide

Additional Accreditation Resources

We are committed to providing your team with resources that support your anesthesiologist assistant educational programs throughout the accreditation process. Explore our support resources below as you embark on your pathway to accreditation or accreditation renewal.

Planning for Accreditation Planning for Accreditation

Tools for Maintaining Accreditation Tools for Maintaining Accreditation

Program Administration Resources Program Administration Resources

Planning for Accreditation

Plan for Accreditation

The CAAHEP Accreditation Process

Get a closer look at the CAAHEP accreditation process for the anesthesiologist assistant program to get a better understanding of expectations and requirements.

View Process

Action Plan Checklist for Getting Started

Often times, the hardest part of any project is organizing a plan to get started. At ARC-AA, we’ve created a comprehensive checklist, broken into accreditation phases, identifying the appropriate activities and resources you’ll need for a smooth accreditation process.

View Action Plan

Plan for Accreditation
Tools for Maintaining Accreditation

Maintain Accreditation

Survey Tools

The ARC-AA developed a series of surveys to support your program in reaching out and gathering crucial program information from individuals who are currently engaging or who have engaged with your program.

These surveys are structured for ease of use and designed to measure your program’s effectiveness from the perspective of program graduates, their employers, existing students, and program personnel.

The following survey tools are available via SurveyMonkey. Email jennifer@arc-aa.org to copy the instrument to the program’s paid SurveyMonkey account. For more information on how to use these surveys, please review the ARC-AA Policies and Procedures Manual for Programs.

Survey for Graduates

Survey for Students

Survey for Employers

Survey for Program Personnel

The Resources Assessment Matrix

Accredited programs must conduct a resources assessment at least once a year and are required to complete all columns of the ARC-AA designated Resource Assessment Matrix (RAM). This matrix rates the efficacy of each resource to determine the viability and value of the program. This matrix covers the following resources:

  • Faculty
  • Medical Director
  • Support Personnel
  • Curriculum
  • Financial Resources
  • Facilities
  • Clinical Resources
  • Learning Resources
  • Physician Interaction

View Resources Assessment Matrix

Checklist for Program Directors

ARC-AA has developed a comprehensive checklist to assist program directors in tracking ARC-AA and CAAHEP requirements to maintain accreditation. This checklist should be used as an internal document.

View Program Director Checklist

Program Administration Resources

Program Administration

Advisory Committee Meeting Templates

To receive and maintain accreditation, each anesthesiologist assistant education program must designate an advisory committee. This group must meet at least once a year to assist the program and sponsor personnel in formulating and periodically revising appropriate goals and learning domains, monitoring needs and expectations, and ensuring the program is responsive to change, and reviewing and ensuring the program requires minimum numbers of clinical hours and patient cases.

To help your advisory committee succeed and to help with accreditation compliance, we’ve developed an easy-to-use Advisory Committee Meeting Agenda & Minutes template that can be used to standardize each meeting for efficiency and transparency.

View Agenda & Minutes Meeting Template

Personnel Change Form

When there is a change in personnel (President/CEO, Dean, Program Director, or Medical Director), whether on a permanent, temporary, or acting basis, you must notify the ARC-AA no later than 30 calendar days following the effective date.

For the Program Director and Medical Director, in addition to the personnel change form, the following information must accompany the personnel change:

  • Letter of Appointment/Acceptance
  • Proof of Academic Appointment
  • CV showing formal education/degrees and related experience
  • License

Download Personnel Change Form

Accreditation Fee Schedule

Review all associated fees to seek and maintain accreditation.

View Fee Structure

Take the Next Steps

Take the Next Steps

Towards Excellence in AA Education

Contact us today to begin your path to accreditation. Together, we can shape the future of anesthesiologist assistant education.

Contact Us