An agreement (usually formal) between two or more otherwise independent programs or individuals which defines how they will relate to each other. Affiliation agreements may specify: procedures for referring or transferring patients from one facility to another; joint faculty and/or medical staff appointments; teaching relationships; sharing of records or services; or provision of consultation between programs.
Any one of a number of arrangements among providers outlining their relationships and their individual responsibilities. The relationships are contained in documents which range from broad letters of intent to detailed contracts. In the past, such arrangements were often called alliances, but this term was preempted in the health care reform movement by proposals for specific organizations labelled “health care alliances,” which were often referred to merely as “alliances.”
Membership in a larger organization.
In legal terms, determining the paternity of a child.