The healthcare industry is one of the most regulated industries to exist due to its highly sensitive work environment. Since lives are at stake every day in the healthcare field, healthcare employers should consider implementing a continuous monitoring program to ensure that patient safety and care remain top of mind.
Implementing a continuous monitoring solution can help maximize safety and risk mitigation, provide real-time alerts on changes in employment qualifications of your workforce, and help protect your organization from potential liabilities.
What is Continuous Monitoring?
Not to be confused with periodic background checks, continuous monitoring, also known as continuous background screening, is the practice of monitoring potential criminal activity post-hire. These services pair well with periodic checks and are typically conducted to notify you of any changes to an employee’s criminal record in real-time.
For healthcare organizations, a pre-employment background check is just one “snapshot” of an employee’s record – and that may not be enough. If an employee is charged with criminal offenses, fraud, or other concerning activities while employed, it’s imperative for your organization to know. Continuous monitoring can help employers stay informed and help prevent fines, penalties, lawsuits, and more.
Being Proactive with Continuous Monitoring
Healthcare employers do everything in their power to ensure patient safety and care are delivered to the best of their ability. With continuous monitoring, employers can gain visibility into any potential risks and concerns into the workplace and determine a solution proactively. Here are some additional benefits that continuous monitoring can provide:
Protect your patients
Healthcare professionals work closely with vulnerable populations, such as seniors and children. This means that safety and risk mitigation must be a top priority for healthcare employers. For example, an employer may need to further assess a healthcare worker who was arrested for a violent crime or sexual assault after being hired. These types of concerns are important for any industry to consider, but even more so for the healthcare industry, where lives are at stake every day.
Maintain compliance
Healthcare organizations and providers are required to maintain compliance with relevant federal healthcare laws and regulations, as well as with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) guidelines.
Under the CMS, hospitals, and health systems are prohibited from affiliating with individuals and groups convicted or suspected of committing fraud. The Health and Human Services Department’s Office Inspector General (OIG) also prohibits healthcare organizations from hiring any sanctioned from federal programs such as Medicaid or convicted of certain crimes.
Continuous background checks can help ensure that your healthcare organization won’t have to face large fines or penalties by employing sanctioned or excluded employees.
Seamless monitoring
Many healthcare organizations conduct monthly or quarterly exclusion screening checks already. Continuous monitoring can complement this by filling in the criminal history gaps. In addition, exclusion screening may not be enough to reveal other red flags. Continuous monitoring gives a holistic overview into the entire scope of an employee’s record, serving as a proactive risk mitigation tool for your company.
Get Started with Accurate for Your Continuous Monitoring Needs
As a leading provider of automated healthcare workforce screening solutions, we have the extensive knowledge and best in-class solutions to optimize your screening experience. Leveraging industry-leading partners and compliance technology, Accurate enables its clients to make the informed hiring decisions needed for healthcare’s complex staffing requirements and competitive labor market.
Contact our team or click the link to learn more about our continuous monitoring solutions today.
