Briefings on Credentialing

Briefings on Credentialing, February 2010

Although MSPs may not have the largest role to play in a practitioner’s road to recovery, knowing the organization’s substance abuse policies provides a sense of stability during a difficult time.

MSPs can help alert medical staff leaders to a potential security risk by telling them about a practitioner who acts abnormally during the credentialing process. Because MSPs process applications for so many practitioners, they know what behaviors constitute normal stress versus those that are warning signs.

What secrets do communication savvy MSPs have to share with their peers? The most common techniques are befriending the practitioner’s office manager and using the communication routes—whether phone, e-mail, or face-to-face conversations—that worked before. 

The Joint Commission released a draft of standard MS.01.01.01 (formerly MS.1.20) and its 36 EPs on its Web site for field review until January 28, 2010. This review gives interested parties an opportunity to comment on the controversial and long-reviewed standard.