The ongoing nurse staffing crisis is creating a multitude of complexities for hospitals and healthcare systems, especially verifying credentials. An already lengthy and expensive process, credentialing can become a major bottleneck to meeting patient demand, costing healthcare organizations millions of dollars as well as time that could be better managed towards seeing more patients.
Even after a nurse's credentials have been verified, the retention rate issue remains. In a recent global study of clinicians conducted by Elsevier Health, 1 in 3 participants said they were planning to leave their current role within the next two to three years, with almost half of U.S.-based participants reporting this response. Based on this study and other trends predicting that nursing turnover will persist, streamlining the credentialing process is critical to address the compounding staffing crisis.
Credentialing processes can be costly and inefficient
Verifying credentials is imperative to ensuring patients receive care from qualified nurses. However, it can also be a costly and disjointed process, especially during a time of staffing shortages. Often, several departments are involved in credentialing compliance which creates administrative complexities. Responsibilities like checking licensing boards or searching the OIG exclusion list are often distributed between Compliance and HR departments. This elongates the process, increases the chance for errors and ultimately prevents qualified nurses from providing care to more patients.
HR and Compliance partnership: A proactive approach
There are various ways to manage the complexities that come with the nurse staffing crisis and the credentialing process. One suggested strategy is to better connect and foster the relationship between HR and Compliance departments. A proactive approach that involves a cohesive partnership between HR and Compliance departments can make an impact on the quality of care patients receive by properly credentialed nurses. ProviderTrust Co-founder, Mike Rosen, spoke to the evolving partnership between HR and Compliance departments in a recent webinar. He said, "Compliance has moved from being that group that's going to come point their finger, shake their head, always say no and make life difficult to being proactive and able to help the organization meet its goals and objectives." Rosen added, "It's become a foundational building block of a successful people strategy in coordination directly with the traditional role of Human Resources and People Operations."
When HR and Compliance departments are connected and complementing each other as partners, healthcare organizations benefit from efficiencies created to ensure policy adhesion, quicker credentialing processes, reduced costs and mitigated risks. With all these areas managed smoothly, capacity is freed up for both departments to focus on mission-critical activity. HR can recruit, hire, onboard and retain more nursing staff. Leadership and Compliance can monitor licensure and state board actions on a continuous basis to ensure their nurses are qualified to serve patients. By bridging the gap between HR and Compliance departments, mutual awareness of potential issues should never come as a surprise. Open communication and collaboration between these two crucial departments serve to protect patient safety and improve trust in the healthcare organization as a whole.
Donna Thiel, Chief Compliance Officer at ProviderTrust, recently addressed this topic in a keynote presentation at HR Healthcare 2021, a national conference for healthcare HR leaders. She spoke to the benefits of a collaborative approach to HR and Compliance, with patients at the center of all efforts. She said, "We have to be a team in order to survive…There has to be collaboration…It helps all of us realize that we are partners as we're trying to make these difficult decisions."
About ProviderTrust
ProviderTrust simplifies and automates the license monitoring process for healthcare's top HR and Compliance teams. Working as a complement to an existing credentialing process, ProviderTrust provides daily exact match results from the primary source. This allows healthcare organizations to focus on their patients, saving time and money while ensuring credentials are always in good standing.
Overcome the nurse staffing crisis by learning more about ProviderTrust's license monitoring solution.