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Part 1: Friday, February 2 | 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
How to Address Reports a Credentialed Practitioner Has Sexually Assaulted or Harassed a Patient, Employee or Another Practitioner on Hospital Premises
This presentation identifies the elements of sexual assault and sexual harassment and explains the processes used by hospital medical peer review committees to evaluate/investigate the report. These tools include interviews, and review of documentation, texts and videotapes. We will also address the range of possible actions if the report is determined to have merit. We will discuss the application of the state peer review privilege when a criminal complaint is lodged against a practitioner for assault or a complaint is filed with an agency for sexual harassment or hostile work environment. Finally, we will cover the need to know relevant state and federal reporting requirements.
Speakers:
- Sherri T. Alexander, Shareholder | Chair, Medical Staff Group
- Daria A. Porta, Associate
The Lorna Breen Act: Balancing Patient Safety and the Need to Ask Questions about a Practitioner’s Physical and Mental Health
In 2020, during the height of the pandemic, Dr. Lorna Breen, an emergency physician, committed suicide after spending weeks working 16-18 hour shifts daily, struggling with lack of PPE, scarce resources, and a constant flow of critically ill patients. When she was no longer able to work her friends and colleagues convinced her to be admitted to an inpatient psychiatric facility. Believing that a mental health crisis on her record would bring an end to her career, she instead chose to take her own life. This session will discuss the Lorna Breen Act and subsequent legislation related to practitioner mental health along with the limited questions about mental health that have been adopted by at least 25 state licensing boards and the push for institutions to similarly limit their credentialing questions. We will discuss options for managing these questions, balancing practitioner mental health against patient safety.
Speaker:
- Erin L. Muellenberg, Principal | Vice Chair, Medical Staff Group
- Mark A. Smith, MD, MBA, FACS | Chief medical Officer, The Hardenbergh Group | Professor of Surgery (Voluntary), University of California, Irvine, Department of Surgery, Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
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Part 2: Friday, February 9 | 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
Emergency Call and the Medical Staff: Legal Requirements and Best Practices
This session will provide an overview of the legal requirements and considerations associated with maintaining an on-call roster and discuss best practices regarding medical staff policies, setting expectations for compliance, and circumstances warranting corrective action.
Speakers:
- Rebecca B. Hoyes, Principal
- Rebecca M. Lindstrom, Shareholder
Navigating Medical Staff Management During and After a Transaction
This session will explore the complex legal and operational challenges that can arise during the sale or acquisition of a health care facility or dissolution of a joint venture. We will cover the key legal and logistical considerations and risk areas, and will provide guidance for identifying medical staff challenges early in the process, and managing them throughout the transaction to ensure continued legal and accreditation compliance.
Speakers:
- Alexis L. Angell, Shareholder
- Erik A. Martin, Shareholder
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Part 3: Friday, February 23 | 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
Peer Review of Employed Physicians
This presentation will discuss the nuance of conducting peer review on employed physicians, the differences from situations where no employment arrangement exists, and the balance of HR and medical staff peer review.
Speakers:
- John T. Synowicki, Shareholder
- Adam D. Chilton, Associate
Government Enforcement and the Medical Staff: How to Help Your Organization Prevent Health Care Fraud
This session will cover how medical staff professionals, leaders and their counsel can identify and prevent violations of federal and state law including false claims act violations, health care fraud, and other offenses likely to put organizations at risk. This session will explore the hallmarks of these offenses and identify areas of particular risk. We will provide guidance on proactive systems to prevent and detect offenses as well as tips for responding to law enforcement inquiries.
Speakers:
- Jessica M. Andrade, Shareholder | Government Investigations Vice Chair
- Adrienne E. Frazior, Shareholder
Part 4: Friday, March 1 | 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
Advancing Health Equity: The Joint Commission’s New Leadership Standard
This session will provide an overview of the principles and drivers of health equity as background and context for the January 2023 new Joint Commission Standard, LD.04.03.08 on reducing health disparities for hospital patients. The speakers will discuss The Joint Commission standards and elements of performance and conclude with a discussion of practical implications of the new standard for members of the Medical Staff and for relationships with community resources and support services.
Speakers:
- Lori A. Oliver, Shareholder
- Jasmine C. Gonzalez, Counsel
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Navigating Today’s Federal Public Policy Process
This session will walk through the current Federal Public Policy process and its impact on hospital medical staffs, physicians, and other health care providers. Julius will include a discussion of new and pending legislation that will directly impact all health care providers.
Speaker:
- Julius W. Hobson, Jr., Senior Policy Advisor
Security Incident Response Insights for Medical Staff Issues
Organizations must be prepared to respond to privacy and security incidents, both small and large, and recent international, state, and federal regulations, developments, and enforcement related to data security and breach issues that will affect how organizations respond. Many of these incidents involve different types of breaches at the state and federal level, including with regard to common issues with health care professionals. This presentation will include information about the incidents most often encountered involving health care professionals directly, and will provide best practices for health care entities of all types with regard to incident response.
Speaker:
- Iliana L. Peters, Shareholder
Part 5: Friday, March 8 | 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
In part 5 you will have the option to choose from two sessions, one will focus on Texas-specific laws and the other will focus on California-specific laws.
Option 1: California
New Laws and Regulations Impacting California Practitioners and Trends in Medical Board Enforcement Activities
This session will address new laws and regulations that will impact health care providers and medical staffs in California. This will be an up-to-date session with the latest in laws that have recently become effective and significant pending legislation. We will also cover new trends in Medical Board Enforcement Activities and the new law giving complainants the right to be interviewed by an investigator before a case is closed.
Speakers:
- Erin L. Muellenberg, Principal | Vice Chair, Medical Staff Group
- Rebecca B. Hoyes, Principal
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Option 2: Texas
New Obligations Imposed by Texas House Bill 1998 Effective September 1, 2023 on Hospitals and the Texas Medical Board in the Aftermath of Dr. Christopher Duntsch
This topic will evaluate the new law's direct lineage to Dr. Duntsch, explain the shortened reporting requirements for hospitals to the Texas Medical Board for adverse actions against physicians, and address the Texas Medical Board's obligation to continuously query and to include relevant information from the National Practitioner Data Bank in the Texas Medical Board Profiles.
Withdrawal of Life-Sustaining Treatment - Texas Change in Law and the Impact on Medical Staff Governance Documents
This topic will address the change implemented September 1, 2023 in Texas which drastically modified the requirements and process of withdrawing life-sustaining treatment in Texas and the impact on medical staff policies.
Calling Safe Harbor - Texas Nurse Practice Act and the Impact on Medical Staff
This topic will cover the definition and purpose of Safe Harbor and who and when Safe Harbor may be invoked, identifying the requirement for calling Safe Harbor, recognizing the immediate effects of Safe Harbor and understanding the process for retaining Safe Harbor protections, and potential impact on medical staff members.
Updates on Texas Abortion Laws and Cases and How They Relate to Medical Staff Policies and Procedures
This topic will address Texas law banning the performance of abortions, as well as exceptions to the ban and legislative updates, and the impact on medical staff and hospital rules, policies and procedures.
Speakers:
- Sherri T. Alexander, Shareholder | Chair, Medical Staff Group
- John T. Synowicki, Shareholder
- Alexis L. Angell, Shareholder
- Adam D. Chilton, Associate
If you have questions or would like more information regarding this webinar, please contact webinars@polsinelli.com.
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