Imposter surveyors: the Joint Commission urges hospital caution.

With the Joint Commission now conducting all regular surveys on an unannounced basis, imposters have turned up in a number of hospitals claiming to be Joint Commission surveyors. In this article, the author provides information on what to expect when a surveyor arrives, spells out the established procedures surveyors follow when visiting an organization to conduct an unannounced accreditation survey, and sets forth procedures for authenticating surveyor identification.