HQAA Blog

 

 

Consumers have come to expect confidentiality and privacy in all business transactions today, whether on line or in retail establishments.  Healthcare is no exception and patient/customers are now protected by HIPAA (the Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996).  Consumers who have received any healthcare service in a hospital, doctor’s office, medical lab, or pharmacy have been exposed to some education about HIPAA.  Medical equipment companies are no different and have some unique issues to plan and prepare for to comply with this complex regulation and the even more fundamental patient right to privacy and confidentiality. 

Topics: Employee Training, HIPAA, Security, HME Accreditation Requirements, Patient File Requirements, Compliance, Patient Privacy

Say the word “warehouse” and many people conjure up images of a dark, dusty, damp place with rows of equipment and boxes piled to the ceiling. 

A home medical equipment company’s warehouse certainly can be the source of problems, deficiencies with standards, safety hazards, and infection control issues. But with just a little planning, some elbow grease, and a bit of ongoing monitoring, you can turn your warehouse into a clean, safe, even pleasant environment that improves operational efficiencies and helps your employees do their job well. 

Topics: Quality Improvement, HME Accreditation Requirements, Avoiding Deficiencies, Warehouse

How do you ensure your delivery vehicle is roadworthy, safe and prepared for your daily delivery and pick-up activities?

You keep in mind the three keys to an HME accreditation-compliant delivery vehicle: safety, maintenance and security.

Topics: HME Accreditation Requirements, Compliance, Delivery

In healthcare and the healthcare workplace, competency assessment has become crucial to ensuring employees—particularly those providing direct patient care—have the necessary training and skill to do  their job and care for their patients.

For DMEs that provides medical equipment and supplies to patients, this concept of assessing and maintaining staff competence is crucial, and sometimes misunderstood. 

Topics: Employee Training, HQAA Accreditation, HME Accreditation Requirements, Competence

When it comes to DME accreditation, surveyors receive multiple inquiries on an ongoing basis regarding how to monitor quality continuously and improve the performance of their organization.

Topics: Quality Improvement, Quality Standards, HME Accreditation Requirements, Process Improvement

In reviewing over 1,000 patient files in the past six years, here is a list of some of the most common patient file deficiencies I have found.

Topics: HME Accreditation Requirements, Patient File Requirements, Avoiding Deficiencies

Or ... running on the treadmill and staying in the same place fast?

Reimbursements have dropped, goods cost more, employees would like a raise and as the business owner, you are barely staying in the black. You constantly make cuts to your expenses when you can, but the situation still is less than desirable.

Topics: Quality Standards, HME Accreditation Requirements, Compliance

In order to determine if a grievance or complaint needs to be recorded, you must first decide what is, and what is not, a complaint. Your team must determine the threshold that it takes for a concern or question to truly be a complaint/grievance. Not every concern expressed may be a complaint. Let’s look at two examples:

Topics: HME Accreditation Requirements, Avoiding Deficiencies, Complaint Process

What does it mean to have my practice accredited?
To become accredited means that you have applied, implemented and adhered to a set of business practices that focus on quality and quality of care.  If you intend to submit claims to Medicare for Part B DME items, it means that you have gone through the process to adhere to the set of Quality Standards that Medicare has imposed.

Topics: HME Accreditation Requirements, Physicians, Chiropractors

The Boy Scouts' motto “Always Be Prepared” can often come in handy, especially when it comes to an emergency situation. Having working disaster and emergency preparedness plans in place before you need them, training your staff in advance and reviewing/testing the plans on an annual basis ensures you are prepared. You may never have to use either one, but if you do, you will have a more positive result in a potentially difficult time.

Topics: HME Accreditation Requirements