MSP tip of the week: Stay on top of legal issues

Whether you’re responsible for coordinating the peer review committee or perform credentialing duties, at some point in your medical staff services career, you will more than likely need to know certain aspects of legal issue. At minimum, legal considerations include the following:

• The Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 (HCQIA): Congress passed this statute to protect those who participate in good faith peer review. This Act also led to the establishment of the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) and the Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank (HIPDB). To learn more about the NPDB and the HIPDB, visit www.npdb-hipdb.hrsa.gov./ Also read “How to navigate National Practitioner Data Bank reports effectively: Legal experts offer tips for medical staffs and practitioners” in the November issue of Credentialing and Peer Review Legal Insider (subscription required).
• Sharing of information: Due to recent law suits, hospitals need to be cautious when providing verifications to other entities. To learn more, read “Don’t be scared into silence: Affiliation letter safeguards allow you to disclose more” in the June issue of Credentialing and Peer Review Legal Insider (subscription required). 
• Attestations, acknowledgements, and release forms: All three of these forms are essential elements of the credentialing process. For more information, please see The Credentialing Coordinator’s Handbook, published by HCPro, Inc.
• Criminal background checks: MSPs should have knowledge of how to implement criminal background checks and when they are appropriate. To learn more, read “Why, when, and how to conduct criminal background checks on the medical staff” in the January issue of Briefings on Credentialing (subscription required).
• Disruptive and impaired practitioners: MSPs should know how to avoid lawsuits related to behavior and impaired practitioner-related issues. To learn more, read “Tips for writing an effective code of conduct policy” in the January issue of Medical Staff Briefing (subscription required). Also read “Sounding the alarm on disruptive behavior to meet Joint Commission standards” in the October 2008 issue of Medical Staff Briefing (subscription required).

This week’s tip is adapted from The Credentialing Coordinator’s Handbook by Anne Roberts, CPMSM, CPCS—now available at a reduced price!