Ask the expert: I'm too busy to detail how I spend my time. Is it essential that the medical staff services department track every activity?

Hospital administration and governance must closely monitor the work completed by the medical staff services department (MSSD) personnel. This is essential to ensure adequate staffing and sufficient time for the vital functions of credentialing, re-credentialing, privileging, medical staff orientation, medical staff meeting support, and other numerous jobs of the MSSD. Create a report that monitors the MSSD’s activity using a variety of indicators. Include the primary functions of the typical MSSD and modify it to include the duties specific to your organization.

In addition to analyzing the work of the medical staff office, determining the amount of time that is spent on each task can be useful in evaluating staffing needs. When you create your chart tracking your activities, consider adding how much time is spent on each activity. You may want to create a summary on a monthly, quarterly, or an annual basis.

This week’s question and answer are from The Medical Staff Meeting Companion: Tools and Techniques for Effective Presentations by Kathy Matzka, CPMSM, CPCS.