Calabasas, Calif. – November 8, 2005 – On Assignment, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASGN), a leading provider of life sciences and healthcare staffing solutions, today announced that its Nurse Travel staffing division received the Gold Seal of Approval for Healthcare Staffing Services by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), effective October 21, 2005.

After an extensive on-site assessment the Joint Commission’s Health Care Staffing Services (HCSS) Certification Program verified the ability of On Assignment Nurse Travel to meet the rigorous criteria established for compliance and performance in leadership, human resources management, performance measurement and improvement, and information management.

“The JCAHO Gold Seal of Approval recognizes our long standing reputation as a first-class staffing firm focused on providing the highest quality employees for our clients and successful careers for our nurses,” said Shawn Mohr, President of On Assignment Healthcare Staffing.  

Due in part to the ongoing shortages of nurses and other professional personnel and increased reliance on qualified temporary staff, the Joint Commission’s HCSS Certification Program was launched in October 2004 to provide an independent, comprehensive evaluation of a staffing firm’s ability to provide competent staffing services. On Assignment Nurse Travel joined this elite group of certified staffing companies and earned preferential consideration among many hospitals for its commitment to continuous improvement in safety and quality of care and performance.

“On Assignment Nurse Travel has always focused on delivering the highest standard in patient care by providing experienced, quality professionals,” said Peter Dameris, President and Chief Executive Officer of On Assignment. “JCAHO’s review and HCSS Certification offers our employees and clients the greatest level of confidence that we are truly dedicated to continuous improvement and placing people first.”

Founded in 1951, the Joint Commission seeks to continuously improve the safety and quality of care provided to the public through the provision of health care accreditation and related services that support performance improvement in health care organizations. An independent, not-for-profit organization, the Joint Commission is the nation’s oldest and largest standards setting and accrediting body in health care.

On Assignment, Inc. is a diversified professional staffing firm providing flexible and permanent staffing solutions in specialty skills including Laboratory/Scientific, Healthcare, Medical Financial, and Health Information Services. The corporate headquarters are located in Calabasas, California. On Assignment, Inc. was founded in 1985 and went public in 1992. The company's branch network encompasses approximately 60 branch offices across the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Belgium.