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Credentialing & Verification Update Credentialing Resource Center Connection

Credentialing Resource Center Connection

National credentialing and privileging expert Sally J. Pelletier, CPCS, CPMSM, delivers useful and timely information in her weekly " Credentialing Resource Center Connection" column.

2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002

Credentialing Resource Center Connection

Issue 52, December 29, 2005

• JCAHO establishes physician engagement advisory group

  The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations has put together a Physician...

Issue 51, December 22, 2005

• AOA Physician Profile service named official display agent

  The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) announced that it has signed a license agreement...

Issue 50, December 15, 2005

• AMA calls for DC medical liability reform

  The American Medical Association called on the Washington, DC city council to put a stop to the...

Issue 49, December 8, 2005

• AMA asks Congress to stop Medicare physician payment cuts

  If Congress does not act to stop severe Medicare payment cuts, many physicians will be forced to...

Issue 46, November 17, 2005

• JCAHO refutes AHA criticism regarding use of patient-level data

  The JCAHO released a statement rebutting the American Hospital Association's (AHA) criticism that...

• NCQA: Enrollment down, quality up in health plans that report on performance

  The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) detailed increased quality and decreased...

Issue 45, November 10, 2005

• JCAHO’s plan to use hospitals’ patient data garners objections

  Plans by JCAHO staff to use hospital patient data to provide analyses for third parties received...

Issue 44, November 3, 2005

• Grant helps physicians affected by hurricane disasters

  The American Medical Association's (AMA) Health Care Recovery Fund received an infusion of grant...

Issue 43, October 27, 2005

• Healthcare organizations join forces to push for nurse workforce programs

  Eleven national healthcare organizations have banded together to urge the Senate's healthcare...

Issue 42, October 20, 2005

• Study: Bariatric surgery riskier than previously thought

  A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association this week showed that patients...

Issue 41, October 13, 2005

• AMA Foundation offers grants to physicians affected by natural disasters

  The AMA Foundation announced it will offer grants to help physicians rebuild their practices in the...

Issue 40, October 6, 2005

• AMA to Congress: stop looming Medicare cuts

  In testimony before the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, the American Medical...

Issue 39, September 29, 2005

• Katrina displaces nearly 6,000 physicians

  Hurricane Katrina and the floods following the storm appear to have displaced some 5,944 active...

Issue 38, September 22, 2005

• Psych, mental health, gerontological nurses sought for Katrina relief effort

  The American Nurses Association (ANA) and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) are...

Issue 37, September 15, 2005

• AMA expands database, expedites licensing for displaced physicians

  Physicians displaced by the tragic events resulting from Hurricane Katrina will have an ally in the...

Issue 36, September 8, 2005

• HHS to coordinate volunteer physicians, Mississippi grants emergency licenses

  In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the American Medical Association announced the US Department...

Issue 35, September 1, 2005

• New campaign offers advice for recovery after leaving hospital

  The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations has established a new initiative...

Issue 33, August 18, 2005

• Virginia, DC Medicaid programs expand

  Virginia and Washington, DC will now require health plans participating in Medicaid to adopt NCQA...

Issue 32, August 11, 2005

• What factors should I consider when establishing a time frame for physician reap

  When defining a time frame for reappointment, be sure to allow adequate time to prepare application...

• What factors effect the time frame for physician reappointment?

  When defining a time frame for reappointment, be sure to allow adequate time to prepare application...

• Key questions to ask in the clinical interview

  The following are questions important to ask every applicant during the clinical interview.

• NQF endorses AMA / Physician Consortium and NCQA quality measures

  The American Medical Association-convened Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement...

• A turning point in information availability

  Dear credentialing colleague: Thomas L. Freedman reports in his spellbinding bestseller "The...

Issue 31, August 4, 2005

• Bush signs patient safety bill

  On July 29, President Bush signed the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 after...

• Adopting HR procedures in credentialing

  Dear credentialing colleague: The credentialing process for a critical care physician involved...

Issue 30, July 29, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Senate unanimously approves quality improvement bill

  On July 21, the Senate unanimously approved legislation to improve patient safety and to reduce...

Issue 29, July 22, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Court rules EMTALA applies to infants

  The Wisconsin Supreme Court recently ruled that the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor...

Issue 28, July 14, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Mandatory retirement rules

  Dear credentialing colleague: Recently, the Chicago Tribune ran two articles pertinent to this...

Issue 27, July 8, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Membership without privileges

  Dear credentialing colleague: As physicians in many specialties decide to concentrate on...

• Pending medical malpractice cap in IL

  Legislation has passed through the Illinois state House and Senate that will cap medical...

Issue 26, June 24, 2005

• Overhauling the peer review system

  Dear credentialing colleague: Imagine this scenario: This morning's newspaper brought you...

• CMS to implement rehabilitation criteria

  On June 21, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that it will begin to...

Issue 25, June 17, 2005

• No one works without supervision

  Dear credentialing colleague: Recently, a hospital CEO confided in me that his facility has...

• Inpatient stays: OIG reports on quality of care

  According to a June 2005 inspection report from the Office of Inspector General (OIG), 20% of the...

Issue 24, June 16, 2005

• CMS to review specialty hospital Conditions of Participation

  On June 9, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) temporarily halted issuing new...

Issue 23, June 9, 2005

• JCAHO announces new patient safety goals

  On May 31, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) announced its...

Issue 22, June 3, 2005

• When the board asks, give it to them

  Dear credentialing colleague: When the board of directors at the Enron Corporation asked Andrew...

• Malpractice payments increasing in size, but growing proportionately

  Medical malpractice payments grew by an average of four percent annually between 1991 and 2003...

Issue 21, May 26, 2005

• NJ signs patient safety/background check legislation

  The New Jersey state senate and general assembly recently signed legislation that will help...

• When physicians disregard their privileges

  "Physicians on our medical staff are beginning to disregard their assigned clinical privileges...

Issue 20, May 19, 2005

• Revisiting the IOM medical error report

  Five years after the landmark Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on medical errors "To Err is...

• Flaws in CMS' privileging memo

  With the publication in November 2004 of its memo titled "Requirements for Hospital Medical Staff...

Issue 19, May 12, 2005

• California peer review bill stalled

  Trends often start in California, so medical services professionals (MSPs) may want to watch future...

• Google to the rescue!

  Last week I received an e-mail from Sue Webb, medical staff coordinator at Good Samaritan Regional...

Issue 18, May 5, 2005

• JCAHO postpones new requirement for medical staff bylaws

  Medical services professionals (MSPs) can breathe a huge sigh of relief. The JCAHO announced it...

• Stay ahead of the curve: Conduct criminal background checks

  Criminal background checks are routine in thousands of healthcare facilities. They are part of the...

Issue 17, April 28, 2005

• National rates of medical board disciplinary actions released

  On April 19, Public Citizen, a consumer group founded by Ralph Nader, released its annual ranking...

• How would you handle this application: The readers respond

  In the April 15 edition of Credentialing Connection, I asked how you would handle a medical staff...

Issue 16, April 21, 2005

• Malpractice bill stalled in Senate

  Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) last week told physicians they may face an uphill battle in their effort...

• When the board questions an MEC recommended applicant

  When the hospital board or an individual board member disagrees with, or has a significant question...

Issue 15, April 14, 2005

• CMS launches hospital comparison tool

  On April 1, federal officials launched a new program that allows consumers to compare certain...

• How would you handle this application?

  Consider this a brief test of your ability as a credentialing professional.

Issue 14, April 7, 2005

• JCAHO considers expansion of disaster privileging standard

  Currently, disaster privileges apply only to licensed independent practitioners (LIPs) working in...

• No two applicants are alike

  While it is true that policies and procedures should be consistent for all, no two physicians are...

Issue 13, March 31, 2005

• How to handle applicants with limited licenses

  Do your medical staff's credentialing policies require that practitioners maintain an unlimited...

• Setting-specific privileges a top JCAHO problem standard

  Medical services professionals (MSPs) should pay close attention to compliance with standard...

• How to handle applicants with limited licenses

  Do your medical staff's credentialing policies require that practitioners maintain an unlimited...

Issue 12, March 24, 2005

• Establish parameters for physicians practicing in ambulatory care

  Credentialing processes must evolve to reflect the growing trend of family physicians and general...

• JCAHO warns of phony surveyors

  The JCAHO on March 10 warned by e-mail that another hospital, located in the Midwest, had a fake...

• Establish parameters for physicians practicing in ambulatory care

  Credentialing processes must evolve to reflect the growing trend of family physicians and general...

Issue 11, March 17, 2005

• Octogenarian applicants

  It is perhaps time for medical staffs to consider adding the ability to grant dependent clinical...

• ABMS phases-out two primary source tools

  The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) recently posted a "credentialing advisory notice...

• Octogenarian applicants

  Your medical staff bylaws, like those of most hospitals throughout the United States, probably...

Issue 10, March 10, 2005

• No references? No processing. No exceptions.

  There are rare circumstances in which a physician applicant to the medical staff is unable to...

• PCs may pose new risks for medical errors

  According to a study published recently in the Journal of the American Medical Association...

• No references? No processing. No exceptions.

  There are rare circumstances in which a physician applicant to the medical staff is unable to...

Issue 9, March 3, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Supporting the recruitment/credentialing relationship

  If you are among the many credentialing professionals who believe that their hospital's recruitment...

Issue 8, February 24, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Don’t bend on your bylaws

  Most medical staffs clearly understand that denials are to be avoided whenever possible. The best...

• Don't bend on your bylaws

  Recently, I received the following scenario from a newly installed chief of staff:

Issue 7, February 17, 2005

• Aging physicians and quality care

  The authors of the article performed a meta-analysis of all the available studies that correlate...

• CT court rejects absolute immunity for physicians in peer review

  The Connecticut Supreme Court ruled in a decision released Feb. 15 that doctors who voiced their...

Issue 6, February 10, 2005

• Credentialing for telemedicine

  Developments in communications technology have led to innovations in the way some physicians...

• JCAHO liability reform urges strengthening of competency oversight

  The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) recently called for...

• JCAHO liability reform urges strengthening of competency oversight

  The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) recently called for...

Issue 5, February 3, 2005

• Credentialing quick-checks

  Periodically, the credentialing committee and its assistants should pause and "take stock" of the...

• JCAHO certification revisions could take broader scope

  The JCAHO has also proposed the change to standard HR.1.20 to take effect in the areas of...

Issue 4, January 27, 2005

• International medical school verification.

  Verification of graduation is indeed an important and necessary step in the credentialing process...

• Verification of licensure, certification, and registration standards revised.

  The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospital Organizations (JCAHO) has issued a revision of...

Issue 3, January 20, 2005

• Audit your credentialing program

  A hospital’s credentialing program is no less important than its financial position, and...

• Medical report cards may hurt patient care

  According to a recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, medical report cards...

Issue 2, January 13, 2005

• Introducing innovation

  Over the last decade medical staffs and credentials committees have spent countless amounts of time...

• Although Americans say patients bring too many lawsuits, reform is low priority

  According to recent survey results released by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School...

Issue 1, January 6, 2005

• Sedation privileges for ED physicians

  Physicians practicing in the emergency setting should not be constrained by virtue of the...

• Medical Malpractice Reform Campaign Begins

  President George W. Bush is in Illinois this week in an effort to renew his call for medical...

Issue 28, July 20, 2005

• Court rules EMTALA applies to infants

  The Wisconsin Supreme Court recently ruled that the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor...

Issue 19, August 25, 2005

• NKF announces public service campaign to raise awareness of CKD

  The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) this month launched a radio and television public service...

Issue 15, July 28, 2005

• Waiting period for Medicare coverage

  Q: Is there a waiting period to be covered for benefits for dialysis for Medicare? I was told there...

Issue 3, May 5, 2005

• Conditions of Coverage sanctions

  Q: What sanctions might you face if you are not in compliance with the proposed ESRD Conditions of...