QUESTION: Can advanced practice clinicians and other non-physicians be appointed to the medical staff?
ANSWER: Yes, as long as your state hospital licensure regulations and medical staff bylaws allow them to be medical staff members. The Interpretive Guidelines of the Medicare Conditions of Participation for Hospitals, at §482.12(a)(1), say:
- The governing body has the authority, in accordance with state law, to grant medical staff privileges and membership to non-physician practitioners.
- The regulations allow hospitals and their medical staffs to take advantage of the expertise and skills of all types of practitioners who practice at the hospital when making decisions concerning medical staff privileges and membership.
- Granting medical staff privileges and membership to non-physician practitioners is an option available to the governing body; it is not a requirement.
Practitioners who can be on the medical staff may include any of the following:
- Physician assistants
- Nurse practitioners
- Clinical nurse specialists
- CRNAs
- Certified nurse-midwives
- Clinical social workers
- Clinical psychologists
- Anesthesiologist assistants
- Registered dieticians or nutrition professionals
- Physical therapists
- Occupational therapists
- Speech language therapists
Mind you: you don’t have to appoint any of these categories of practitioners to the medical staff, but unless your state law says otherwise, you can.