Compliance Culture: 10 Questions Every Leader Needs to Ask

Previously I shared healthcare leaders must evaluate whether patients are a priority within their compliance program, which leads to:

#2: Cultivating a culture of compliance among staff.

Friends, what is a compliance program if employees are unaware one exists?

A compliance program is more than just creating a compliance handbook, completing a few pieces of training, recording documentation, etc. It protects your patients and provides your employees with policies and procedures for doing their job in a compliant manner.

If they don’t know where you stand, you may miss an opportunity for increased employee engagement and growth.

You may wonder:

“How do I know if I cultivate a culture of compliance among staff?”

You can start by asking yourself these ten self-reflection questions, such as:

• Do I promote my program to employees through updates and reminders?
• Do I educate everyone on the importance of a compliance program?
• Do I explain “why” clearly with examples?
• Do I assign compliance duties to my staff?
• Do I increase their skills by allowing them to pick their responsibilities?
• Have I performed compliance or safety training more than once a year?
• Have I monitored my employees through internal audits and follow-up visits?
• Do I use my audits for educational purposes in compliance with one-on-one or group meetings?
• Do I promote my “open door” non-retaliation policy regarding compliance concerns?
• Do I ask my staff what we can change or add to the compliance program?

Honestly, if you struggle to answer these questions, that’s ok!  Now is the time to use these questions to help you reinvent your team.

The OIG wants no compliance plan on the shelf “to collect dust.” They even support and provide team strategies to get you on the road to success.

Your goal as the leader is to ask yourself the tough questions above and tailor your compliance program to suit your practice needs.

Getting your employees on board with the changes won’t be easy.

But, trust me, even if your employees hate compliance activities or duties initially, they will eventually thank you for providing on-the-job examples, which increases their motivation overall.

*The opinions and observations from Joi Sherrod/group are not a promise to exempt your practice from fines and penalties.  Research, modify and tailor the advice to fit your specialty.

**Click here for Part 1 of this series.