Retirement Villages & Facilities Accreditation

Posted by Kirhat | Friday, August 08, 2008 | | 0 comments »

Photo courtesy of bofel_un

The Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) had recently released the new and updated Retirement Villages and Facilities Accreditation Procedures and Guidelines. Below is the complete highlight:

Statement of Policy

1. It shall be the policy of the Philippine Retirement Authority that all facilities and services that will be offered to its retiree-members conform with internationally accepted standards of quality in comfort, medical care, sanitation, safety, security and lifestyle. Likewise, participating establishment shall conform to the United Nations Principles for Older Persons, i.e., independence, participation, care, self-fulfillment and dignity.

2. Revocation or amendment of these guidelines shall require the approval of the PRA Board of Trustees.

3. An accredited retirement facility is automatically an accredited marketer.

Functional Guidelines

1. PRA is the sole approving authority in all applications for accreditation as a retirement facility and/or establishment. PRI, on the other hand, may recommend appropriate action on applications of new and to be constructed projects for accreditation that PRA may refer for its comments and/or observation. PRI comments shall be returned to PRA not more than ten (10) working days for Approved Projects and not more than fifteen (15) working days for Accredited Projects from receipt of project plan.

2. A retirement facility is required to meet the standards established by PRA in coordination with PRI in order to become an accredited facility.

3. There shall be two (2) types of accreditation which shall be as follows: approved projects and accredited facilities. Approved projects are those which are still on the drawing board, still under construction or in the process of complying with the accreditation standards and are based on formal project studies. Accredited facilities are those which already exist and have complied with the accreditation standards addressing all the nine (9) components of retirement living as follows: healthcare, housing, security and safety, transportation, lifestyle or leisure, human resource development, management, finance, and insurance.

4. Membership with PRI is not a pre-requisite for any developer and/or retirement facility owners before their projects can be approved for accreditation by PRA.

5. An accreditation fee of US$250.00 (or its peso equivalent) shall be charged an accredited facility. Approved projects are not required to pay the accreditation fee. Fee shall be charged once the facility is already classified as accredited. Facility owners shall have the option to apply for the renewal of its accreditation subject to the compliance of PRA requirements and payment of a renewal fee of US$125.00 (or its peso equivalent).

6. For retirement-oriented hotels/condotels/condominiums, the benchmark standards shall be the minimum standards of DOT for the operation of first class hotels in the Philippines plus the PRA accreditation standards of retirement facilities.

7. For retirement-oriented resorts or villages, the benchmark standards shall be the same as the minimum standards of DOT for the operation of a Class AAA resort in the Philippines plus the accreditation standards of PRA for retirement facilities.

8. For DOT accredited projects applying for accreditation with PRA, the processing fee paid to DOT shall be deducted from the initial accreditation fee to be paid to PRA.

9. PRA shall have the right to visit and inspect as often as possible accredited retirements facilities to determine compliance with the accreditation standards and other requirements for accreditation.

10. Required documents submitted for accreditation shall be subject to verification and authentication at the discretion of PRA.

11. PRA reserves the right to issue, deny, suspend, withdraw or reject any accreditation after an evaluation of the capability and integrity of the retirement facility.

12. PRA reserves the right to revise/modify the accreditation standards and system of accreditation duly approved by its Board of Trustees. The revised guidelines shall take effect after the expiration of sixty (60) days notice to the facility administrators and/or owners.

13. Grounds for withdrawal/revocation of accreditation:
  • Non-compliance with any or all of the requirements and conditions of accreditation
  • Revocation, non-renewal or non-issuance of license of the facility by a national or municipal authority
  • Fraud
  • Such other grounds as PRA may determine
14. Retirement facilities must accept any and/or all corrective actions to be prescribed by PRA to ensure quality of services.

15. Accreditation shall take effect upon approval of the application.
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Criteria for the Accreditation of a Retirement Facility

1. The facility must comply with the accreditation standards as approved by the PRA Board of Trustees.

2. The following controls, services and or essentials must be present before a facility for daily assisted living residents can be considered for accreditation:

  • Safety which shall include policy/practice on fire safety, resident safety (policy on missing residents, unexpected death), building safety, food safety, occupational health and safety, first-aid requirements.
  • Infection control which shall include policy on immunization, outbreak contingency plans, isolation, infection control, hand washing, public health inspection reports.
  • Resident Services which shall include guidelines on restraints admissions, registered staff license, resident finances, resident protection, personal health and information protection system, position descriptions and job routines for staff, reference checks, food, laundry and housekeeping services.
  • Staff training which shall include policy on orientation and annual in-service programs for staff, Prevention of Elder Abuse, and food handling in-service.
  • Nursing care, if the resident is provided with personal care and/or assistance with daily living or given medication by the staff of the facility.
3. A comprehensive Residence Information Package to include the following:

  • Types of available accommodation and alternative packages of care services and meals.
  • Total charges for accommodation types with packages.
  • Charges for care service, meal packages and description.
  • Frequency of increases.
  • Additional services and meals (User Pay Basis).
  • Minimum staffing levels and staff qualifications.
  • Emergency response system
  • Complaint procedure
  • General Information (Optional)
Procedures of Accreditation

1. Applicants shall secure from PRA the accreditation application kit which shall include the following:

  • Application for Accreditation Form
  • Statement of Policy and Procedure Manual
  • Standards of Accreditation for Retirement Facilities
  • Checklist of Documentary Requirements
  • Sample copy of a Comprehensive Residence Information Package (Annex “H”)
  • A copy of the Personal Rights of Residents (Annex “I”)
2. Applicant submits to PRA the completed required forms and supporting documents.

3. The Corplan Division of Management Services Office (MSO) shall officially furnish copies of the submitted documents to PRI with the request that their comments be submitted to PRA within ten (10) days from receipt of the documents for approved projects while the Client Relations Division of Marketing Department shall do the same with request to PRI to submit its comments within fifteen (15) working days for accredited facilities.

4. The PRA staff may request the conduct of ocular inspection of the property to be able to prepare a preliminary evaluation of the application within five (5) days after ocular inspection.

5. The PRA staff shall submit to the General Manager thru the Department Manager, his/her evaluation report and recommendation on the action to be taken by Management on the application together with comments from PRI.

6. For already existing retirement facility, PRA Management has the option to give the facility developers or owners six (6) months within which to prepare for an on-site evaluation prior to the final approval of its application for accreditation.

7. For retirement facilities under construction, PRA Management has the option to conduct an ocular inspection of the project within five (5) working days from receipt of application. The final approval of the application is subject to an evaluation report one year after opening of the project.

8. The action division notifies the applicant of whatever action PRA has taken on the application not later than three (3) working days from release of PRA action.

9. The accreditation certificate shall be issued to the facility developer as soon as the application for accreditation is approved. (6 months for accredited facility and 1 year for approved projects).

10. Accreditation fee shall be paid prior to the issuance and release of the Certificate of Accreditation.

11. An approved project will be inspected every six months to monitor its compliance to the criteria for accreditation while an accredited facility will be inspected annually by PRA.

Requirements for the Accreditation of a Retirement Project or Facility

1. For Approved Project:

  • Application for Accreditation – Annex “A”
  • Project Feasibility Study – Annex “B”
  • Proponent’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Registration including Articles of Incorporation and By Laws.
  • Proponent’s audited financial statements for the last three years
  • Proposed Contract to Sell or Lease to retirees
2. For Accredited Facility:

  • Application for Accreditation – Annex “A”
  • Project Brief discussing only paragraphs A (Economic Aspects) and B (Technical Feasibility) of Annex “B” (Project Feasibility Study)
    • Pricing
    • Contract of Sale or Contract of Lease or Contract of Service to retirees, whichever is applicable.

  • Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Registration
  • Articles of Incorporation and By Laws and amendments thereto (if any).
  • DOT accreditation as First Class Hotel or Class AAA resort
  • Audited financial statements for the last three years
  • Latest Income Tax Returns for the last three years
  • Mayor’s Permit and/or municipal license
  • Occupancy Permit issued by the city/municipality where the facility is located
  • List of directors, management officials and consultants, their respective designation/position in the company, home address and nationalities
  • Copy of the Visa issued by the Bureau of Immigration and appropriate permit (AEP), if foreigners.
3. Facilities for Daily Assisted Living and Nursing Care Residents

  • All requirements for existing facilities
  • Management certification on the following:
    • At least 5 percent of the workforce are senior citizens
    • Housekeepers, maids and related support workers are TESDA trained
    • All personnel who take care or will take care of the resident-retirees have undergone appropriate training.
    • Food services are manned by HRM graduates, nutritionists, dieticians, and culinary experts.
    • At least one (1) handicapped-friendly vehicle is exclusively assigned for the use of residents.
    • In the absence of an in-house medical facility or clinic, tie-up with a nearby medical facility, at least within a 10-minute distance from the facility.

  • A copy of the Facility’s Admission Agreement
  • DOH accreditation of the facility’s in-house medical facility or clinic.

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