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CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll Frequently Asked Questions 

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP) offers one-time consultations and on-going mentorship options for the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll. Please reach out to HAI_AS@cdph.ca.govā€‹ā€‹ for more information. ā€‹

General Questions

  1. How long will it take me to complete the application?  

    • In addition to the time needed to compile the required documentation, the application will take roughly 4 to 6 hours to complete. The time needed to compile the required documentation will vary based on the facility. 
    • You do not have to complete the application all in one session, you can start the application and return to it later. Your information will be saved and you can return to the application from the link in your email. 

  2. How do we check enrollment status and expiration date? 

  3. When does our facility's designation expire?  

    • CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll designations are valid for three years and three months. For example, if your facility applied on March 1, 2020, your designation would expire on May 31, 2023. If your facility applied on September 1, 2020, your designation would expire on November 30, 2023. 

  4. How do I know when to reapply/renew?  

    • You may reapply for the same or higher designation three years after your last full application. For example, if you applied on March 1, 2020 and your designation expires on May 31, 2023, we recommend reapplying by March 1, 2023 to avoid a lapse in designation. 
    • Please refer to the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll Application Upgrade and Renewal Timeline ā€‹for additional clarification. 

  5. If I upgraded my application, when does my designation expire?  

    • If you upgraded your application, your designation expires three years after your new designation date. 

  6. Is the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll designation valid for two years or three years?  

    • CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll designations are valid for three years and three months from the deadline date of your last full application that was awarded a designation. 

  7. Is the deadline to apply 11:59 PM on February 28 or 11:59 PM on March 1? 

    • The deadline is a rolling deadline every six months, 11:59 PM on March 1 and 11:59 PM on September 1. 

  8. When can I upgrade my designation? 

    • You can upgrade your facility's application within one year of your full application which was awarded a designation. For example, if your facility completed a full application at the March 1, 2020, deadline and was awarded Bronze designation in May 2020, then you can apply for an upgrade at the September 1, 2020 or March 1, 2021 deadlines. 
    • Please refer to the Application and Renewal Timelineā€‹. 

  9. What happens if I submit a late application?  

    • We do not accept late applications and your application will be reviewed during the following cycle. However, please be aware that criteria may change at the next enrollment cycle and you may have to submit additional documentation to meet requirements. 

  10. What happens if I miss the one-year upgrade period, but I do not want to wait 3 years to upgrade?  

    • You may apply for a higher designation after the one-year upgrade period. However, your facility will need to complete a full renewal application. Since the upgrade application is abbreviated, we recommend aiming to submit an upgrade application instead of reapplying after the one-year upgrade period. 

  11. How will the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll prepare my facility for the General Acute Care Relicensing Survey (GACHRLS), Joint Commission requirements and Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) requirements? 

    • Preparing your CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll application will help your facility organize your antimicrobial stewardship program information and have the documentation easily accessible for the GACHRLS. For more information on how the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll compares to Joint Commission and CMS, please review the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll Comparison Chartā€‹ (PDF). 

  12. How will my application be reviewed and when can I expect to hear back about my application?  

    • The CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll application review process is a multistage process that includes three phases of review. First, applications are reviewed for completeness and documentation requirements. Next, applications are reviewed in depth by the CDPH ID Pharmacist. At this stage, applications with Part III: Demonstrations of Outcomes are reviewed by blinded ASP experts. Lastly, applications are reviewed one last time as a team with the CDPH HAI Chief for a final designation. Due to the extensive review process, you will receive your application status approximately 3 months after the deadline. Please review the Designation Period section on the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll overview webpageā€‹. ā€‹ā€‹

Documentation Questions 

  1. If some of my documentation applies to multiple core elements, do I need to upload the same documentation twice?  

    • No, applications are reviewed holistically and we will review your documentation to fulfill multiple requirements as needed. 

  2. Our facility has already applied for the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) Antimicrobial Stewardship Centers of Excellence. Can we use the same documentation for the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll?  

    • Yes, the same documentation may be submitted if the documentation corresponds to the requirements for the CDPH HAI ASP Honor Roll. However, please double check that you include all the requirements for the designation you are applying, e.g., outcomes for Silver and community engagement for Gold Designation. 

  3. I forgot to upload a document with my application, what do I do? 

    • You will automatically receive a confirmation email after submitting the application. If you realize that there is a document missing from your application, please email the documents to HAI_AS@cdph.ca.govā€‹.ā€‹ā€‹

Part IV: Community Engagement Questions 

  1. Does the community engagement need to be something long term?  

    • Yes, community engagement should continue long-term or have the potential to be long-termā€‹. 

  2. What documentation is required for demonstrating engagement with community partners? 

    • Documentation is currently not required for community engagement, but it can help. Primarily we rely on your description of the partnership/engagement, how the engagement started, what it entails, length, frequency of meetings and what activities have been done (this is where documentation may be useful to help build and explain the relationship). 

  3. How long do we have to have engagement with community partners before applying for the gold? 

    • We have not established a minimum duration of engagement before an ASP can apply for goldā€‹. However, since it may take a few months to establish a relationship, we found that facilities who have been engaging for closer to 6 months tended to have more activities/engagement to describe. 
    • If your partnership is still in the planning phases and activities have yet to start, then your community engagement may be too early for us to evaluate. 

  4. I understand the aim of the community engagement is to improve antimicrobial stewardship, prescribing and/or antimicrobial use, does this aim need to have measurable outcomes such as numerical rates or percentages to show that improvement? Or do we just have to describe what we are doing? 

    • Currently we are not requiring demonstration of outcomes for community engagement. Most facilities have been engaging for only under a year and something to this extent can take longer to demonstrate outcomes. However, if your engagement has resulted in measurable outcomes, you can even use it as your intervention (Part III: Demonstration of Outcomes for Silver designation) as well.
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