HCPro.com: Medical Staff Briefing

June 2008 (Volume 18, Issue 6)	view entire issue

The dos and don'ts of conducting fair hearings
Hospital labs have a sterile environment in which to determine whether a patient has sickle cell anemia, and the outcome is typically straightforward. However, medical staffs do not have such a sterile environment to determine physician competence, and the outcome is often not crystal clear. Generally, every member of your medical staff has the right to a fair hearing if they are accused of unprofessional behavior or technical incompetence, but ensuring a truly fair process can be difficult. MSB has highlighted some key dos and don'ts to help make your fair hearing process just that-fair.

Measuring practice-based learning and improvement
Editor's note: In the May MSB, we discussed how one hospital is measuring physicians' ability to meet the ACGME/Joint Commission's medical knowledge competency. This month, we explore how another hospital is measuring practice-based learning and improvement. The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)/Joint Commission's six core competencies are: 1. Patient care 2. Medical knowledge 3. Practice-based learning and improvement 4. Interpersonal communication skills 5. Professionalism 6. Systems-based practice

Ensuring adequate FTEs for an efficient MSO
Overtime is all in a day's work for most MSPs. For some, "lunch break" is a foreign term, and leaving at 5 p.m. is only a dream. Some MSB readers claim to eat, breathe, and sleep their medical staff office (MSO) responsibilities, and why wouldn't they? Lives depend on accurate credentialing and privileging. Unfortunately, MSOs are understaffed, and this can lead to potentially devastating consequences for the hospital, says Kathy Matzka, CPMSM, CPCS, a medical staff consultant in Lebanon, IL. For example, if a MSP is rushing to credential or privilege a practitioner and overlooks a critical step, he or she may indirectly cause patient harm. "Hospitals don't realize that the MSP is a firewall between poor providers and patients," says Matzka.

Step 4a: The right relationship
When hospitals and physicians establish the right relationship with each other, both parties win. However, the right relationship will mean something different to each hospital. Regardless of differences, though, the key here is for the hospital to recognize that all groups should be treated fairly. The right relationship will be explored in four sections. This section deals with organized medical staff strategies. Organized medical staff strategies fall into several categories

Other recently-published articles from Medical Staff Briefing:

Train an interdisciplinary team for communication

Six evergreen tips for holiday scheduling

Thirteen tips for protecting peer review data and streamlining your processes

Understanding the nuances of legal terms

Understand 2009 Joint Commission changes

Consolidate medical staff categories to take pressure off the MSO and streamline reappointmen

Opening doors for physicians with mental health concerns

13 tips to protect your peer review data and streamline your processes

Sounding the alarm on disruptive behavior to meet Joint Commission standards

Creating win-win physician-hospital arrangements

Measuring the six core competencies to comply with FPPE and OPPE requirements

Competency of the month: Measuring systems-based practice

Practice makes perfect: Physician refresher/re-entry courses

Post-Kadlec best practices

Simplifying the medical staff structure

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