NAMSS 2016 Roundtable: Real Reform through Positive Disruption

As part of its ongoing efforts to work with industry leaders on meaningful reforms to the credentialing and licensure processes, the National Association Medical Staff Services (NAMSS) held its 3rd annual roundtable discussion with industry stakeholders on May 19, 2016 at the Gaylord National Resort in National Harbor, MD. This roundtable, titled Real Reform through Positive Disruption, focused on discussing what NAMSS has already accomplished in 2016, as well as beginning to build consensus on additional reforms.

In 2016, NAMSS, along with the American Hospital Association (AHA), Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and Organized Program Directors Association (OPDA), introduced a new Verification of Graduate Medical Education Training Form to alleviate the burden placed on both program directors and Medical Services Professionals (MSPs) in the training verification process. A NAMSS Task Force has also developed a Model Credentialing Application based on best practices from applications across the nation. Roundtable participants were invited to provide feedback on these documents and discuss their implementation.

Moving forward, NAMSS also proposed reforms to the recredentialing and reappointment cycle, as well as the criminal background check process. Again, roundtable participants discussed these reforms at length to identify the most effective ways to streamline the credentialing and licensure processes and reduce inefficiencies.

NAMSS will continue to work with the roundtable participants and others on an ongoing basis to implement the process improvements so direly needed in the industry. Additional information on the background and outcomes of this year’s roundtable will be available when NAMSS releases its full roundtable report in the near future. Stay tuned!

The following organizations participated in this year’s roundtable: American Association of Physician Assistants (AAPA), American Health Lawyers Association (AHLA), American Hospital Association (AHA), American Medical Association (AMA), Cigna, Council for Affordable Quality Healthcare (CAQH), DNV, Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), and The Joint Commission.