New Effort Aims to Create Safer, More Specialized Healthcare Standards for Children

In a major step forward for pediatric care, the Joint Commission announced it will redesign its accreditation and certification standards to better reflect the unique healthcare needs of children.

Currently, many of the standards used to evaluate children’s hospitals are based on adult care guidelines, although children require a different approach due to their physical, emotional and developmental stages.

This formula can lead to care practices that are not ideally suited for younger patients—a problem the Joint Commission is seeking to address.

Jonathan B. Perlin, M.D., president and CEO of the Joint Commission, addressed the core challenge.

“The evaluation of meeting children’s care needs has historically been grouped under adult-focused standards, when in reality, there are important differences,” Perlin said to MHE. “For example, the cumulative radiation exposure from CT scans that's acceptable for an adult may not be appropriate for a child whose body is developing.”

In response, the Joint Commission has launched a new children’s healthcare strategy that will update how dedicated pediatric institutions are evaluated. At the heart of this plan is the creation of a new Children’s Healthcare Advisory Committee, made up of nationally recognized pediatric clinicians and children’s hospital executives. This group will provide guidance on how to revise or eliminate standards that are inappropriate for pediatric care settings.

Perlin added that this isn’t about making things harder for hospitals—it’s about making care safer and more focused for kids.

“We will be re-evaluating our existing standards—leveraging the input of our Children’s Health Advisory Committee—and determining what best supports a safe pediatric care environment,” he shared. “Then, we will revise standards to be more focused on children’s care needs. Our goal is not to add burden on hospitals. Our goal is to add focus.”

Leading the new advisory committee are Michelle Riley-Brown, president and CEO of Children’s National Hospital, and Michael Anderson, M.D., a pediatric intensivist and former CEO of UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. Both bring decades of leadership and expertise to the initiative.

The Joint Commission’s plan goes beyond rewriting rules—it aims to shape the national conversation around how quality healthcare is defined and delivered in pediatric settings.

According to Anderson, “We’re not just redefining standards—we’re building a future where leading children’s health experts are shaping the national conversation on healthcare excellence.”

The advisory committee will also explore ways accreditation can better support family-centered care and developmental support for children. This means taking into account not only clinical safety but also the broader hospital experience for both young patients and their families. The initiative reflects a growing recognition that care quality is closely tied to emotional well-being, communication and trust between caregivers and providers.

Perlin also shared why the effort matters now more than ever.

“Our youngest patients deserve the safest and highest quality healthcare possible,” he said. “We are confident that—by closely examining and revising our standards to specifically reflect the distinctive developmental, physical, and emotional needs of children—the quality and safety of children’s healthcare ultimately will be enhanced, and healthcare experiences and outcomes will improve for pediatric patients, their families, and caregivers.”

By centering children’s needs in healthcare accreditation, the Joint Commission hopes to ensure every child who enters a hospital receives care that is not only safe but designed specifically with their well-being in mind.