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Ask the expert: What are the qualifications for meeting attendance? Part II

Credentialing Resource Center Connection, February 28, 2008

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Last week's "Ask the Expert" article about the Joint Commission (formerly JCAHO) meeting attendance requirements stated that the 2008 Hospital Accreditation Standards published by The Joint Commission do not mandate that physicians attend a certain number of medical staff meetings (general or committee) in order to retain medical staff membership or to maintain status in a particular category of staff membership. However, a healthcare facility invites a whole host of problems (both legal and nonlegal) if it eliminates the attendance requirements from its medical staff bylaws.

Joseph Cooper, MD, a consultant specializing in medical staff organization at The Greeley Company, a division of HCPro, Inc., located in Marblehead, MA, says that it is best practice to clarify which medical staff meetings the medical staff should attend. He recommends that an organization's bylaws require medical staff members to attend:

• Medical executive committee (MEC) meetings
• Credentials committee meetings
• Peer review/quality meetings

After that, medical staffs can determine whether they want to mandate attendance requirements or encourage attendance at other medical staff, department, committee meetings.

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