Physician leaders most often cite disruptive physicians as their top challenge. In fact, the number of complaints from physician leaders and hospital administrators about disruptive physicians could convince you that the healthcare industry is undergoing an epidemic of disruptive physician behavior. Most often, it is only one or a few physicians at the hospital who create a negative and demeaning image that affects how the rest of the medical staff is perceived.

An overwhelming 90% of physician assistants (PA) feel a disconnect between their official title and their role in healthcare. This sentiment is also shared by many patients, physicians, nurses, and others working in the healthcare setting.

All medical staffs should have a process in place that addresses education about illness and impairment, describes a mechanism for self-referral or referral from other sources, and ensures confidentiality throughout the process.

The medical executive committee (MEC) interacts with many individuals and groups in the hospital. One of the most important relationships in terms of patient care is between the MEC and the general medical staff. The MEC ensures that the medical staff has good physicians through credentialing and privileging, quality improvement, and continuing education activities. However, the MEC is also responsible for communicating hospital business to physicians and ensuring good communication among the medical staff.

In May, the AMA announced the hiring of its first chief health equity officer, Aletha Maybank, MD, MPH. Maybank previously served as deputy commissioner and founding director of the Center for Health Equity within the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Tucked away at the end of most medical staff bylaws is a section titled along the lines of “Review, Revision, Adoption, and Amendment.” While it may seem odd to start our discussion at the end, this section gets to the heart of your medical staff culture and how your bylaws and related documents will be ultimately structured. 

The United States District Court of Texas, El Paso division (the “Court”), denied Tenet Hospitals’ motion to dismiss a plaintiff’s Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) claim, finding that a hospital’s failure to abide by its own screening procedures constitutes a valid EMTALA claim.

Calling all physician leaders, medical staff professionals, and credentialing professionals--We want to hear from you! Join us for a focus group call on Tuesday, June 25 at 1 p.m. EST to discuss the latest in industry news. We want to know what you're most interested in, what challenges you're currently facing, and how we can best meet your credentialing and privileging needs.

As a thank you for participating in the focus group, all callers will recieve a complimentary on-demand webinar. Email Associate Editor Karla Accorto at kaccorto@hcpro.com for more information or to RSVP.