Roundtable Networking Breakfast (limited space available)

Attendees may participate in an informal “Networking Breakfast.” Participants may join in roundtable discussions by areas of interest, including hospital, CVO, or managed care setting. Space is limited to 300 attendees, so be sure to register early. 

Effective Uses of Technology for CVO and Medical Staff Credentialing

In today’s world, just about everyone lives on the Internet. There is a wealth of information at our fingertips but you have to know how to find it. You also have to know your accreditation standards to ensure the information you find can be used as a Primary Source Verification (PSV). Everything from background checks to OIG lists to verification of hospital affiliations can be located on the Internet. This presentation will help you sort out what MSPs can use as PSV, and other methods of obtaining vital information on your practitioners.

The Importance of the Board Certification Process for Healthcare Professionals and the Public’s Trust

This session will provide an overview of topics focusing on the importance of the ABMS (American Board of Medical Specialties). Dr. Weiss also will discuss the relationship between competency and testing, the role of Subspecialty Boards, and ABMS sanctions.

Solving the AHP Conundrum: To Privilege or Not to Privilege?

AHPs…Who are they? How should they be credentialed and privileged? What does The Joint Commission require? Do OPPE and FPPE apply to privileged AHPs? How is competency measured for those AHPs who do not require privileging? How does an organization transition non-privileged AHPs to the HR model? Do these same questions apply to the complementary and alternative medicine providers? These and many more questions will be answered in this session.

How The Joint Commission Leadership Standards Affect the Medical Staff

Compliance with The Joint Commission Leadership standards can be difficult—are you up to the challenge of working with your medical staff leaders to help them understand and relate to the leadership standards? Medical staff leaders typically are volunteers and they may not agree to comply with hospital leadership standards. This session will help you to become familiar with the standards and provide suggestions for ways to encourage medical staff compliance and how to use them to their advantage.

NPDB-HIPDB and Using the PDS to Query

This session will provide updates on new NPDB-HIPDB reporting requirements, Proactive Disclosure Service, and compliance monitoring for data integrity.

Applying Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Principles in Your Centralized Credentials Verification Program to Improve the Effectiveness and Efficiency of Your Program

During this session, participants will gain an understanding of continuous quality improvement (CQI) principles and techniques and how to apply them in the medical staff office setting, with a focus on centralized credentials verification programs (CVO). Examples of how applying CQI principles to a variety of processes has improved efficiency and effectiveness of a system-wide centralized credentials verification program will be discussed, including how they can be utilized to improve employee satisfaction and engagement.

CMS Standards for Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals

This session will focus on the CMS standards for hospitals and critical access hospitals. Lt. Commander Cooper from the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) will provide an overview of the methods surveyors use to ensure compliance and will focus on those standards related to credentialing and privileging as well as other medical staff or patient care standards.

Practical Solutions to On Call and EMTALA Problems

This program will provide a brief overview of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), with the main emphasis on the on-call duties that EMTALA places on hospitals and medical staff physicians. The overview will include EMTALA rules regarding the required medical screening examination given to patients who present to the hospital, stabilizing treatment, and patient transfers, as well as penalties and investigations. The on-call segment will focus on real and practical on-call issues and problems faced by hospitals and on-call physicians.

Getting Practical: How to Match Demonstrated Competency with Privileges

When it comes to the Ongoing Professional Practice Evaluation (OPPE), the Focused Professional Practice Evaluation (FPPE) and the general competencies, do you just want to do what it takes to make a Joint Commission surveyor happy? Or, do you want to protect patients (and make the surveyor happy as a byproduct)? If the latter is your goal, this is your session. Participants will learn a practical, “how-to” approach to measure physician competency and match it with privileges, without creating an excessive burden for your office or your physicians. You’ll come away with tools you can use to carry out OPPE, FPPE, and match the results of peer review to privileges granted.

Stress-less Living, Even in Healthcare

In this fun-filled and humorous presentation, participants will learn the latest research of the effects of stress on the brain and body. They will learn to recognize how stress is manifested physically, emotionally, and behaviorally. The session is filled with tons of coping strategies, humor, and stress prevention techniques.

Don’t Get No Respect? Maybe It Is Your Job Description!

Many MSPs perform various management functions yet often are not recognized for their knowledge and responsibilities in patient safety, accreditation, risk management and physician competency. A meaningful and effective job description is exactly the tool needed to gain recognition and appropriate compensation for you and your staff.

Demonstrating Value: Conducting a Compelling Cost Benefit Analysis

The management of the nation’s hospitals is today far more complicated than at any time in the past. The effective medical staff office director must learn how to conduct and document a  compelling cost benefit analysis (CBA). This tool is a normal expectation in nearly all other large complex businesses and is now necessary in health care. Session presenters will clearly demonstrate how to conduct a CBA, and participants will learn how to demonstrate the value their department adds to the organization and to the medical staff. 

To Share or Not to Share – What System Centralized Verification Services Could/Should/Can’t/Might Share with Multiple Customers

Minus an industry standard, CVOs today function with different rules and policies for what they can and can’t share and with whom (hospitals, IPA, health plans, internally or externally, etc.). This session will explore options for consideration based on feedback from CVOs in a pre-conference poll, legal input and review of contracts/agreements.

Negligent Credentialing Cases on the Rise: Are Hospitals at Greater Risk?

Darling vs. Charleston Memorial Hospital was just the beginning. Negligent credentialing cases are on the rise. Hospitals must ensure that their credentialing practices and evaluation of practitioners are sufficient to satisfy their legal duty to patients. This session will review recent negligent credentialing cases, understand how these cases give insight into defensive measures to take and the biggest mistakes that hospitals make. In addition, the session will discuss whether your peer review credentialing statutes will help or hinder your efforts to defend against these claims.

This session will discuss ways in which to handle the various needs of different clients who may or may not be under the same accreditation standards, i.e., one client under The Joint Commission, the other under NCQA. This session also will review the technical needs of disseminating information electronically and how to ensure proper access to information. Discussion will also include a la carte credentialing for a CVO.

Writing for Professional Publications: Keys to Success in Print and Digital Mediums

This workshop will teach participants how to write for professional publication. Participants will learn what editors look for when reviewing proposals and when reviewing peer-reviewed texts. Additionally, participants will gain valuable experience in constructing a proposal, researching applicable journals, and writing for a specific audience. Finally, participants will discover differences between print and digital media, and will leave the workshop with the ability to successfully approach both interfaces.

Liability Insurance 101

Malpractice insurance—we know we need to have evidence of coverage but can we really define the terms and coverage based on the certificate? This session will help you decipher the certificate of insurance and learn the definitions of common terms. A general overview of malpractice insurance and common terms will be provided. In addition, the session will provide answers to common questions regarding different aspects of coverage; the need to have a facility as the named certificate holder and what that means; what procedures/privileges are covered, and coverage for proctoring or supervising an allied health professional.

Protecting the Medical Staff through Documentation

[Ital]If you didn’t write it down, it didn’t happen…[Ital] That’s the rule when it comes to justifying an action, showing evidence of compliance, or defending a decision. This session will review the various reasons for documenting activities and actions, and the consequences of not documenting appropriately. Discussion will also include methods for improving effectiveness, tips for producing legally defensible documentation, and tracking and follow-up techniques.