A tracer follows one real patient through your hospital and asks the staff who cared for them how the care was given. Expect questions on identity, consent, handover, medication, infection control and the record, asked where the care happened.
How a tracer works
JCI describes its tracer methodology as a review of how a hospital delivers care to the patient.1 Surveyors evaluate more than a thousand measurable elements over the survey, with a six-month look-back for evidence.2 The tracer is where most of them are tested.
| Step in care | What they ask staff |
|---|---|
| Arrival | How did you confirm who this patient is? |
| Assessment | Where is the assessment, and when was it done? |
| Consent | What was the patient told, and in which language? |
| Treatment and medication | How was this medication checked before it was given? |
| Handover | How did the next team know what had happened? |
| Discharge and follow-up | Who follows up the result, and how will the patient hear? |
- Choose a real patient. Pick an ordinary patient from last week.
- Walk the route. Visit each place the patient went and ask the questions above.
- Open the record at each step. Staff should find each answer in the record.
- Time each answer. Anything over two minutes points to a gap in the system.
- Write up and fix. One page per tracer, with actions that close.
- Patient traced ______ Date ______
- Steps visited ______
- Questions asked and who answered ______
- Where the record answered, and where it did not ______
- Actions, owner and date ______
Questions
Who do surveyors talk to in a tracer?
The staff who cared for the patient, at the place the care happened.
Can we choose the patients traced?
Plan as if you cannot. Rehearse with ordinary patients from the last few weeks.
How long do tracers take?
JCI's public pages do not give a length. It is set in the survey agenda for your programme.
Sources
- 1Joint Commission International, 2026Hospital accreditation programRead source
- 2Joint Commission International, 2026Accreditation processRead source
Written by the wai team from Joint Commission International guidance, checked on 15 October 2026. This is guidance, not legal advice. JCI does not endorse wai or any software.