All Entries Tagged With: "credentials committee"
Contest entry: Streamline credentials committee meetings
Judy Smedra, CPMSM, CPCS, director of medical staff affairs at the University of Kansas Hospital, has instituted a process to streamline activities at credentials committee meetings. All credentials committee members are requested to come to the medical staff office prior to the meeting to review all new applications and reappointments. At the meeting, those individuals take ownership of the files they reviewed by giving a report on the contents and leading the discussion about that applicant.
“This process has made members more actively involved in each meeting and more aware of credentialing requirements and placement of documents in the files. During Joint Commission surveys, this knowledge has been apparent to the surveyors, which is always a plus!” Smedra writes.
Thanks for the great tip Judi! Sometimes the simplest changes make the biggest difference!
Contest entry: Who doesn’t want post-meeting follow up to be a breeze?
Kim Everett, medical staff coordinator at Good Samaritan Hospital in Vincennes, IN, submitted a great form to the Greeley Medical Staff Institute Symposium contest that streamlines post-meeting wrap-ups.
Everett writes that the medical staff departments, services, and committees at Good Samaritan meet at least 200 times per year, and the medical staff services department (MSSD) is responsible for meeting preparations, minutes, and follow up. Agenda items are gathered from hospital departments for approval, but the number can get overwhelming.
To ensure all items are discussed or approved by the various committees, the MSSD created an agenda tracking form, which is made available to department secretaries who are responsible for providing the MSSD with discussion and approval items. The MSSD reviews the document and places it on the appropriate agendas for the right month.
“Implementation of the form has enabled us to ensure appropriate committee approval. In addition, the tracking forms are kept electronically, and when questioned as to the committees which discussed/approved a particular agenda item, the electronic tracking form quickly points us to which minutes should be reviewed for further information,” Everett writes.
Great stuff Kim! Never underestimate the value of a good form!
To submit your tip, tool, or form, please e-mail Karen Cheung at kcheung@hcpro.com. To learn more about The Greeley Medical Staff Institute Symposium contest, click here.
Greeley Medical Staff Institute contest entry
As we gear up for the Greeley Medical Staff Institute Symposium, we’re soliciting our readers for their tips, best practices, and expert advice for a chance to win two free seats to the event in Naples, FL November 8-9. The entries have been so creative and insightful that we couldn’t keep them to ourselves!
Here’s a great tip for medical staff servies professionals submitted by Kathleen Tafel, administrator of the medical and dental staff at Ellis Hospital in Schenectady, NY.
Kathleen writes:
“Having the same person attend and support the executive officers, executive committee, credentials committee, and bylaws committee meetings helps to bring continuity to the tasks of the team members of a medical staff office. This individual becomes the office historian and is able to convey information to the team that will help them in processing an application, creating a call schedule, or bringing forward revisions to privilege forms. Many times, the medical staff office is not kept in the loop. This individual provides that connection to events, processes, policies or actions that may affect or have impact on how they process a file or interact with the applicant.”
With regard to reappointment, Kathleen also suggests creating a reappointment schedule that coordinates with all the committees at which credentials files are to be reviewed. Allow adequate time to process the applications, ensure the primary source verifications are fresh, and obtain recommendations from chairs, chiefs, and committees. “Staying on time and within the framework of that developed schedule will make for confident presentations at credentials committee and a quick turn-around to the board,” she says.
Thanks Kathleen! Keep the great ideas coming!
Advancing an application to credentials committee, or not
What percentage of the applications your office receives advance to a credentials committee review? Take our poll and see how your statistics compare to your peers.
In the comment boxes below, let us know some of the common reasons why those applications don’t move on to the next step.
$1.6 million victory for female doctor claiming harassment and mistreatment
If you missed the memo, disruptive, discriminatory behavior will no longer be tolerated in the workplace—especially hospitals.
A U.S. District Court jury awarded $1.6 million to Dr. Sagun Tuli, a neurosurgeon at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA and a native of India. The jury found that Tuli was subject to harassment, ridicule, intimidation, or other abusive conduct with regard to her sex and her nationality of origin—much of it instigated by her boss, Dr. Arthur Day, the chair of the neurosurgery department at Brigham and Women’s.
New board for hospitalists
Today’s news release from the American Board of Physician Specialties revealed the new American Board of Hospital Medicine. This new board certifies physicians who practice in an inpatient setting and meet the criteria listed in the eligibility Requirements. Most MSPs are familiar with American Board of Medical Specialties and American Osteopathic Association Boards. However, it would be worth a discussion at your next Credentials Committee to discuss whether or not certification by the American Board of Physician Specialties would be recognized.
What seems to be an element of controversy is the requirement for completion of a residency program approved by the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education or the American Osteopathic Association, or the College of Family Practice of Canada, or the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons and deemed acceptable to the American Board of Hospital Medicine. Unlike the ABMS Board, there is less stringency with the type of residency required. For example, the American Board of Internal Medicine requires completed residency in Internal Medicine. I’ve heard comments from Board certified physicians that the American Board of Physician Specialties is not as discerning as the ABMS Boards.
It is interesting that another eligibility requirement could be current board certification in Family Practice, Internal Medicine, or Emergency Medicine by ABMS, ABPS, or AOA. (www.abpsga.org/certification/hospital_medicine/eligibility.html)
This topic may spark some interesting discussion among the physician leaders at the next Credentials Committee or Medical Executive Committee.
Carole La Pine, MSA, CPMSM, CPCS