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New equivalent sources for credentialing physician assistants

Credentialing Resource Center Connection, March 24, 2004

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Dear Credentialing Colleague:

Congratulations to the American Medical Association (AMA). The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) announced last week its decision to designate selected data from the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) Masterfile as equivalent primary sources.

Patrick McDonald, of the AMA, shared the good news with me this week. The JCAHO's decision allows medical staff services professionals (MSSPs) to use select information from the AAPA Physician Assistant Profile as equivalent primary source--making MSSPs jobs just a bit less taxing.

In a letter making it official, the JCAHO stated: "This letter awards designated equivalent status for two data elements within the [AAPA] Masterfile. These two data elements are: 1) the status of education of physician assistants in their medical school, and 2) the status of certification in the National Commission for the Certification of Physician Assistants."

"For the purpose of these two data elements, designated equivalent status means that the results of a query from the AAPA Masterfile can be used in the same way as a query of the primary source," the JCAHO wrote.

McDonald notes, however, that in regard to physician assistants' licensure, the AAPA Masterfile is still considered a credentials verification organization (CVO) source and is therefore subject to the JCAHO's 10 principles for evaluating data from an external source. (Find those principles in the rationale for JCAHO standard MS.4.10 in the medical staff chapter of the Comprehensive Accreditation Manual for Hospitals.)

Once again, congratulations to the AMA for organizing a program that helps MSSPs and credentialing professionals nationwide perform this important work.

That's all for this week.

All the best,

Hugh Greeley

http://www.greeley.com/seminars/

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