The 7th Edition Standards
Please note that in August 2006 COA issued new 8th Edition Standards. You can access those standards at www.coastandards.org and find out more by clicking here. The information on this and the following pages is intended only for those organizations that began the accreditation process prior to August 2006 using the 7th Edition Standards. If you are unsure whether your organization is using the 7th or 8th Edition, please contact your Accreditation Coordinator. All organizations beginning the process after August 2006 must use the 8th Edition.
COA's standards, which are published in the 7th Edition of COA's Standards and Self-Study Manual address all aspects of Organization and Management Standards and Service Standards.
The Organization and Management Standards address practice elements that apply to all organizations regardless of the types of services they provide. These elements include such practice areas as governance, fiscal management, human resources management, and quality improvement.
The 7th Edition includes a volume of Organization and Management Standards for private not-for-profit and for-profit organizations and, for the first time, a separate volume of Organization and Management Standards for public organizations. This special volume for public organizations includes specially modified sections on organizational integrity and financial management that address the unique aspects of the public service delivery system.
The Service Standards are published in a separate volume and address practice elements that are unique to specific service types. This special volume, which is provided with both the private and the public versions of the 7th Edition Manual, contains 38 Sections of standards that include standards for close to 60 different types of social and behavioral healthcare programs.
Open our COA Publications order form for information on how to order these important volumes.
