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Public Safety prepares for re-accreditation by Cindy Abole Public Relations    Maintaining a safe, respectful work and patient environment delivered by a workforce committed to the upmost standards of quality is MUSC’s Department of Public Safety mission. Managing these high standards with others within the law enforcement profession is the purpose of accreditation. Beginning in mid-August, public safety will be evaluated for its efforts through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc. (CALEA).     Public Safety communications supervisor Angie Taylor-Batiste fields calls in Public Safety's Communications Center. Taylor-Batiste is among nine telecommunicators who respond to routine and emergency calls on campus. Public Safety's Communications Division is one of many service divisions gearing up for national re-accreditation in mid-August. This process marks the department’s second re-accreditation since its first time in 1998. It also makes MUSC’s Department of Public Safety eligible for recognition in CALEA’s Flagship Agency Program, a merit award acknowledging the past performance of eligible accredited agencies based on their excellence, expertise and achievements.   CALEA accreditation is considered the standard of excellence within law enforcement, public safety communications and training agencies. Local, state and national agencies providing these services are eligible to participate in CALEA’s accreditation program.   “We feel very prepared and ready,” said Anthony Dunbar, chief and director of MUSC’s Department of Public Safety. “Complying with the standards required to maintain accreditation is the only logical course of action for a department such as ours.” This will mark Dunbar’s first time working with the CALEA reaccreditation process since taking the helm in August.      The Department of Public Safety must comply to 349 of 400 standards in order to maintain its accredited status. Nationally, there are 703 law enforcement agencies who are CALEA accredited. Of that number, only 34 are accredited campus law enforcement agencies. MUSC remains the only standing medical university that is nationally accredited.      The visiting CALEA team will consist of three assessors representing state police and campus law enforcement agencies. They will conduct an on-site assessment, verifying the candidate agency’s compliance to standards, review of activities, meetings with staff and collect comments from the service community. Finally, the team will submit a formal report to the agency for the commission’s review and decision. The results will be announced at the CALEA national conference in Nashville, Nov. 16-19.      Each candidate-agency must submit an application and complete a self-assessment, on-site assessment and commission review as part of the process. CALEA agencies undergoing re-assessment file annual reports attesting their compliance and reporting any relevant changes. An amendment to this year’s process included the early submission and review of some candidate-agency files prior to the on-site assessment. Also new is input from a panel review featuring file presentations from staff from the candidate-agencies.   Debbie Wagenbrenner reviews files in preparation for CALEA re-accreditation. “We’re in really good shape,” said Debbie Wagenbrenner, accreditation manager for the Department of Public Safety since 1999. “Our public safety staff have worked closely together in preparing for this effort. It’s what CALEA wants and that’s for everyone to be involved in the process.”   To prepare for the event, the department underwent a May 16 mock assessment with the assistance of five local assessors. They were from the Mount Pleasant Police Department, Charleston County Aviation Authority Police Department, Charleston County Sheriff's Department and Columbia Police Department.      As part of the process, the on-site assessment team will receive open comments from the MUSC community, Aug. 29 from 1 to 5 p.m. The public may call 843-792-3014 to participate. Telephone comments are limited to 10 minutes and must address the agency’s ability to comply with CALEA standards. A copy of the standards is available at the Department of Public Safety Building, 101 Doughty Street, downtown Charleston. Written comments concerning performance can also be submitted for review to other Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Inc. (CALEA), 10306 Eaton Place, Suite 100, Fairfax, Va., 22030-2201.     Friday, July 22, 2005 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to petersnd@musc.edu or catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Community Press at 849-1778.