The Australian Council on Healthcare Standards is an independent, non-profit organisation to improve the quality of health care through continual review of performance and accreditation. Established in 1974, it now has more than 800 member health-care organisations representing more than 1,000 individual organisations. In 2005, it started providing services internationally amid increasing global interest in its accreditation. The council said its accreditation programme was designed to provide a framework for continuous improvement.