professional practice evaluation

April 20, 2023

Posted on by Courtney Patterson

QUESTION:
Our peer review committee recently developed a plan for a physician that involved proctoring of a number of the physician’s cases.  It came up in our meeting as to whether patients had to be informed that their physician is being proctored.  Is this required?

OUR ANSWER FROM HORTYSPRINGER ATTORNEY LEEANNE MITCHELL:
Proctoring is part of the confidential peer review/professional practice evaluation process.  But, as a practical matter, patients may need to be made aware of the fact that another physician may be involved in their care.  Proctoring – whether in surgical or non-surgical situations – often includes not only review of the patient’s medical record but also an examination of the patient, which means that some explanation regarding that individual’s presence must be provided.  While not always the case, if proctors are instructed to intervene in a surgical procedure if necessary, the patient should be in­formed that the proctor may participate in the procedure and that information should be included in the patient’s written consent to the procedure.

While it is the proctored physician’s responsibility to inform his or her patients about the proctoring, the patient does not have to be informed of the reason for the proctoring.  A simple statement will suffice, such as:  “The hospital and our team are committed to providing appropriate care.  Dr. Proctor will also be [working with me/may examine you/review your medical record/scrub in and be ready to assist in your procedure if necessary].”

Finally, documentation completed by the proctor should not be included in the patient’s medical record.  We recommend that proctors be provided with “proctoring forms” that elicit information in as objective a format as possible about the issues that are being assessed, and that these forms be maintained as part of the hospital’s peer review/professional practice evaluation process – not as clinical records maintained in the medical record.

February 16, 2023

Posted on by Courtney Patterson

QUESTION:
Our bylaws say that new medical staff members are “provisional” for at least 12 months, sometimes for 24 months.  Is this the same thing as focused professional practice evaluation?

OUR ANSWER FROM HORTYSPRINGER ATTORNEY LEEANNE MITCHELL:
No – or at least it shouldn’t be!  Focused professional practice evaluation (“FPPE”) is the Joint Commission terminology for the period of focused review that is required for following the grant of any new clinical privileges as the way of confirming practitioner competence – this means a focused review of all privileges for new applicants and all new privileges for existing practitioners (i.e., increases in privileges).  FPPE can be accomplished in many different ways – chart review, proctoring/direct observation, external reviews, even discussions with others who are involved in the care of the individual’s patients.  The Joint Commission does not mandate the duration of FPPE for any practitioner and, in fact, have specifically noted in the past that using a traditional 12-month provisional period as the time frame for performing FPPE could be overly burdensome for practitioners who had high volumes.

To that end, there is no requirement that hospitals and medical staffs maintain a provisional appointment status, though we do still see many hospitals that continue to utilize that status, generally as a way to assess the “citizenship” aspects of medical staff appointment – like behavior, attendance at and participation in medical staff affairs, completion of medical records, fulfillment of call obligations, etc.  In addition, at the same time, but generally for a much shorter duration, all new members are subjected to FPPE, the requirements of which depend on the practitioner’s specialty and clinical privileges.  The key is to understand that if a medical staff is going to maintain a provisional status or process, it should be addressed separately from the FPPE to confirm competence process.

September 16, 2021

Posted on by Courtney Patterson

QUESTION:
We’re developing new case review forms for our peer review process and wondered whether we should ask reviewers to assign a numerical score to various aspects of care.  Do you recommend scoring cases in this way?

ANSWER:

No!  In our experience, scoring has the following drawbacks:

(1)        Too much energy is spent assigning the score, which distracts from the most important questions:  Is there a concern with the care provided, and if so, how can that concern be addressed?

(2)        Numerical scores can’t capture the complexity of a case in the same way as a longer narrative.

(3)        Physician reviewers may be uncomfortable assigning low scores which indicate that care was “inappropriate” or “below the standard,” especially if those scores are accompanied only by short statements such as “care below the standard.”  As a result, they choose higher scores indicated “care appropriate” even if there are concerns.

(4)        Scores may put physicians on the defensive, especially since most scoring systems don’t allow for the provision of nuanced information.

These characteristics of scoring can undermine efforts to make the peer review process educational rather than punitive.  Accordingly, we recommend having a peer review/professional practice evaluation (“PPE”) system that focuses on actions and performance improvements rather than scoring.

March 25, 2021

Posted on by jwilbert

QUESTION:       Can our professional practice evaluation/peer review committee use e-mail to communicate with physicians about the review of clinical or behavioral concerns?

ANSWER:           Yes.  Physician leaders have told us that they prefer communicating via e-mail (both internally and with the physician under review) because it’s quick and less formal than regular mail.  The lack of formality can help to reduce anxiety on the part of the recipient and convey the message that the PPE/peer review process is meant to be educational, not punitive.  In contrast, using certified mail sends the message that the Hospital is anticipating a confrontation and that lawyers will soon be involved.

Using e-mail to discuss PPE/peer review matters would not, on its own, waive the peer review privilege under state law.  However, there are several best practices that should be adopted:

    • All e-mails should include a standard convention, such as “Confidential PPE/Peer Review Communication” in the subject line.
    • E-mail should not be sent to non-Hospital accounts unless the e-mail merely directs recipients to check their Hospital e-mail.
    • If the e-mail contains any Protected Health Information (as that term is defined by the HIPAA Privacy Rule), the e-mail must comply with the Hospital’s HIPAA policies. Often, this will require that the e-mail be encrypted.
    • If an e-mail includes a deadline for a response (for example, a request for input or to attend a meeting), the Hospital may want to send a text message or call the physician to say that the e-mail is being sent. The goal is to ensure the physician is aware of the e-mail so the deadline is not missed.  However, the Hospital’s policy should also make clear that failure to send a text message or make a phone call is not an excuse for the physician to miss a deadline.

Of course, there are times when it’s more appropriate to use a formal letter.  If a physician has not responded to prior collegial efforts, a letter may help to convey the seriousness of the matter.  Also, the applicable Medical Staff policy should always be checked to ensure it does not require correspondence to be sent via certified mail or some other form of “Special Notice.”  This is typically the case where a matter has progressed to a formal Investigation or a Medical Staff hearing is under way.

June 29, 2017

Posted on by hortyspringer

QUESTION:        We’ve taken steps in the last year to change the perception of peer review from punitive to educational.  We’ve eliminated scoring, increased the use of educational sessions to share lessons learned from the review process, and created accountability for fixing system/process concerns that are identified during the review process.  Overall, our physicians feel the process is much improved.  However, there are occasional holdouts who refuse to provide input when their cases are under review, and who seem intent on simply delaying the review process.  What can we do?

ANSWER:            Obtaining timely and meaningful input from the physician under review is an essential element of an effective and fair professional practice evaluation (“PPE”) process.  Giving the physician an opportunity to provide input enhances the credibility of the process and encourages everyone involved to think critically about a case.

There are several fundamental rules to obtaining input.  Most importantly, PPE policies should state that no “intervention” (such as an educational letter or a performance improvement plan) will occur until a physician has been given the opportunity to provide input.  Also, physicians should be given the opportunity to provide both written and verbal input by meeting with those conducting a review.  Input can be obtained at any point in the process, and multiple requests for input may be made.

If a reviewer has questions about a case, the physician should be notified of the concerns.  Any letter to the physician must be carefully drafted to avoid giving the impression that a decision about the case has already been made.

The PPE policy should also make clear that a physician cannot stop the review process by not providing input.  PPE policies should state that individuals who fail to provide input when requested by the PPEC can be deemed to have temporarily and voluntarily relinquished their clinical privileges until the input is provided.  Such relinquishments do not entitle the physician to a Medical Staff hearing or appeal, nor are they reportable to any federal or state government agency.  Instead, they are merely an administrative “time-out” until the physician provides the requested information.

To learn more about PPE best practices, join Paul Verardi and Phil Zarone by dialing in for the upcoming audio conference: Professional Practice Evaluation Policy — Special Topics on July 11.