There are many reasons why physicians and medical staff members take leave of absences. Whatever the reason, it’s important to have a policy in place to address reappointment following a leave of absence. Today’s free resource is a sample leave of absence policy. It was created by the medical staff office at American University Beirut Medical Center, a Joint Commission International-accredited hospital in Beirut, Lebanon, for its credentials committee. The policy explains what a physician leave of absence is and how to credential and privilege a physician coming back from one.

Todd Sagin, MD, JD, brings a unique perspective to the medical staff field with a background as a physician, medical staff leader, and a lawyer. Sagin is now the national medical director of Sagin Healthcare Consulting, LLC and HC Healthcare Consultants, LLC, and frequently is exposed to the daily struggles faced by today's medical staffs.

Although CMS has now substantially limited the ability of a hospital to establish provider-based (PB) locations, they have been extremely popular over the past few years because they allow a hospital to bill for services as if they were provided at the main hospital building (i.e., each service generates both a facility fee and a professional fee). 

CRC's Achievement Awards honor MSPs and medical staff leaders who make a difference in their organization and serve as an inspiration to the broader professional community.

The CRC homepage is sporting a brand-new polling feature. Our first question asks site visitors for their take on which verbiage best represents those in the MSP profession: “medical staff professional” or “medical services professional.” 

Click here to access the poll directly. You must be signed in with your free or paid CRC account to participate.

Have a hot medical staff or credentialing topic you’d like your peers to weigh in on? Send question and topic proposals to CRC Editor Delaney Rebernik at drebernik@hcpro.com, and you could see your idea showcased in a future poll.