By Jaimee McGuire, DNP, NP-C, CHPSE, CHC, VP/Deputy Compliance Officer
As mentioned in last month’s newsletter, the Compliance department is in the midst of a transformation that will allow us to better align with current and modern healthcare compliance practices based on the Office of Inspector General’s Seven Elements of an Effective Compliance Program. Because a culture of compliance is critical to the health and well-being of an organization and its team members, we are spotlighting each of the Seven Elements over the next several months.
Element No. 1
The first of the Seven Elements is Implementing Written Policies, Procedures, and Standards of Conduct. As most of you know, we recently worked through an organizational policy review and update. In addition, we began using the HealthDox platform in mid-2020 which is a significant improvement over the use of SharePoint for our policy management system. The BHG Compliance Team remains responsible for the oversight of the policy management system and ensuring all departments have the appropriate guiding policies in place.
BHG Compliance policies and procedures promote the organization’s commitment to compliance and address specific areas of risk. As per the Office of Inspector General, “The purpose of compliance policies and procedures is to establish rules that help employees carry out their job functions in a manner that ensures compliance with federal health care program requirements and furthers the mission and objectives of the organization.” Our Compliance policies and procedures provide the guidance needed to ensure we are appropriately monitoring for, identifying, and mitigating risk.
Visit the HealthDox platform
Over the next few months, you will see new Compliance policies rolled out via the HealthDox platform. All team members receive monthly email notifications detailing all changes to policies and the addition of new policies. We encourage everyone to take a moment to visit HealthDox and ensure that you are up to date on the most current policy and procedure documents.
Revised Code of Conduct coming soon
In addition to new Compliance policies, all team members will soon receive a revised Code of Conduct. The Code of Conduct spells out expectations of all team members by outlining principles and standards that all BHG team members and business associates acting on behalf of the company must follow. The Code of Conduct currently is housed within the BHG Team Member Handbook, but it is being revised as a stand-alone document that will be reviewed and acknowledged by all BHG team members.
Please feel free to reach out to the BHG Compliance Team should you have any questions or concerns related to compliance policies, procedures, or ethical conduct in the workplace. Thank you for partnering with the BHG Compliance Department to ensure we abide by the governing rules that allow us to provide the best possible care for our patients, and for doing your part to ensure our continued culture of compliance.