ACCREDITATION PROCESS

1. An electronic version of the submission should be provided (with the exception of the letters of reference). All applications are sent by the ECLAM Secretary to the Chair of the Credentials Committee. The ECLAM Secretariat informs the Treasurer of incoming applications.
2. The Chair of the Credentials Committee is responsible for the organisation of the accreditation process. In particular, the Chair must warrant that all data exclusively transferred in electronic form is identical to the originals and that the members of the Credentials Committee are not biased in favour or against particular applicants. All persons involved in the accreditation process are responsible for absolute discretion and confidentiality regarding the whole application, in particular in connection with all facility descriptions and reference letters.
3. The Chair of the Credentials Committee writes to the applicant – with a copy to the ECLAM Secretary - acknowledging receipt of an application.
4. The Chair of the Credentials Committee informs all members of the Credentials Committee about the personal background of each applicant and requests a declaration of impartiality from each member of the Committee. If a member of the Credentials Committee declares a possible bias for or against a particular applicant, the member is excluded from the accreditation procedure in respect of this applicant.
5. The Chair forwards all application documents to all impartial members of the Credentials Committee.
   All applications are first reviewed in detail by two impartial members of the Credentials Committee. The two reviewers to be involved in a particular application process are chosen by the Chair of the Credentials Committee according to a rotation principle.
   If the application documents provided are incomplete, the two reviewers of the Credentials Committee are obliged to request this material. However, all correspondence between the Credentials Committee and the applicant must be carried out by the Chair of the Credentials Committee in order to warrant confidentiality of the reviewing process. The Chair forwards copies of his correspondence with the applicant to the ECLAM Secretary.
   Each of the two reviewers of the Credentials Committee is expected to write an opinion on the application and to forward this to the Chair of the Credentials Committee.
6. The Chair of the Credentials Committee distributes the comments of the two reviewers to all impartial members of the Credentials Committee.
7. On the basis of the application documents and the comments of the two reviewers, each impartial member of the Credentials Committee votes in favour or against accreditation of the applicant. The votes are forwarded to the Chair of the Credentials Committee.
8. The Chair of the Credentials Committee documents the results of the review and the voting process and decides in favour or against accreditation. He forwards his final report on the accreditation process to all members of the Credentials Committee. He merely informs Council and the Chairs of the Examination and Training Committees of the outcome of the process (without forwarding the final report).
9. In the event of a positive decision, the ECLAM Secretariat informs the applicant about the final outcome of the accreditation process, date and venue of the next examination and the requirement for the candidate to register for examination.Eligibility to enter for examination to obtain active ECLAM Diplomate status is normally restricted to 3 years following the approval of an applicant’s credentials.
10. In the event of an adverse decision, the Credentials Committee advises the failed applicant which measures may potentially be suited to meet ECLAM’s credentials requirements prior to application for examination. The failed applicant is encouraged to re-apply after carrying out the measures recommended by the Credentials Committee.
11. In the event of an adverse decision, the applicant is entitled to appeal to the ECLAM Secretary within 30 days of receipt of the decision. Council will reconsider the decision within 90 days of receiving the appeal.

Timelines:
Applications can be sent to the ECLAM Secretary at any time. Applications must however be submitted by November 1st of any year in order to be admitted to the written, oral and practical examinations taking place the following year. The accreditation process can only be started following receipt of complete applications. The accreditation process may be delayed considerably if applications are incomplete and additional material has to be requested from the applicant. Complete applications forwarded by the Secretary to the Credentials Committee by November 1st will require up to 4 months (by February 28th) for evaluation (points 1-8 of the above schedule). The Secretariat will inform the candidate (point 9 of the above schedule) about his eligibility within 1 month, i.e. by March 31st. For examination that year the successful candidate must register for examination and pay the appropriate fee by May 31st.