Value and Impact of Public Health Accreditation

Posted on August 28, 2025 by Britt Lang

This entry is part 60 of 61 in the series Focus on Accreditation and Innovation

The Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) administers the national public health Accreditation program, providing health departments with a set of nationally recognized, practice-focused, and evidence-based standards to improve accountability and performance, and ultimately deliver better services to support their communities. To evaluate the value and impact of the Accreditation program, health departments are surveyed by PHAB at five milestones: after completing the Readiness and Training process, soon after becoming accredited, one year after becoming accredited, four years after becoming accredited, and after achieving Reaccreditation.

Once a year, PHAB publishes findings from the previous year’s evaluation results in our Value and Impact report. Highlights from this year’s report include the following:

Quality improvement is consistently cited as one of the top motivators for applying for Accreditation as well as one of the most commonly cited benefits. Among health departments accredited for one year, 100% agree that Accreditation has stimulated quality and performance improvement opportunities within their health department.*
Accredited health departments must have a workforce development plan in place to assess organization-wide competencies and capacity, address gaps, and identify strategies for improvement. Among health departments accredited for one year, 95% agree that Accreditation has improved their department’s ability to better identify their strengths and weaknesses.*
Accreditation establishes clear standards and expectations, ensuring that health departments are responsible for delivering essential services to their communities. Health departments accredited for one year report strengthened internal and external accountability – 90% report improved accountability to external stakeholders.^
Accreditation prioritizes continuous learning, evidence-based practices, and data-driven decision making. Among health departments accredited for one year, 95% agree that Accreditation has helped their department document their capacity to deliver the three core functions of public health and the Ten Essential Public Health Services.*

Interested in learning more about the value and impact of Accreditation? Read the full report here.

Source: PHAB One Year Post-Accreditation Survey; *N=22; ^N=21

About the Author

Britt Lang: Britt Lang, MA, MPH, is a Senior Research Specialist at the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB). In that role, they conduct internal and external research and evaluation activities related to PHAB operations. Prior to joining PHAB, Britt was the Senior Research Coordinator for the Division of Family Planning at the University of Pennsylvania, conducting research on contraception, miscarriage management, and abortion care. They hold a master’s degree in public health from the University of Pennsylvania, a master’s degree in English from Temple University, and an undergraduate degree in English from The College of New Jersey.