NATA is pleased to advise of the revised process for handling applications for additions to a facility’s scope of accreditation.
This revised process is only applicable to applications which are able to be processed by in-office (desk-top) reviews. Such reviews can be performed where the facility already has an existing competency covered by its scope of accreditation and is requesting an addition which doesn’t require an on-site assessment.
Unlike on-site assessments for extending a facility’s scope of accreditation, in-office reviews have not included an assessment report being issued and hence findings not referenced against the clause number(s) of the relevant accreditation standard. This often resulted in the findings not always clearly expressed resulting in protracted correspondence.
To implement a consistent approach for handling requests for additions to a scope of accreditation, whether processed as an on-site assessment or in-office review, the same procedure will now be adopted. This now means that if an in-office review is performed, an assessment report will be prepared which clearly articulates the finding(s) and the facility required to provide a response to any non-conformity which includes cause analysis.
Consideration to hold a virtual meeting will be given when review of the documentation provided by the facility results in a finding(s) which warrants discussion. This would mirror the exit meeting typically held during an on-site assessment, allowing for direct engagement between the assessment team and the facility to address queries and confirm findings in real time.
This revised approach introduces an improvement in NATA’s processes taking on board the feedback from our members.