A Quality Assurance (QA) program is a key part of a successful compliance program. While QA programs cover all levels of compliance in an ambulance service, in this post we will discuss the importance of a QA program for reviewing run documentation. QA for run documentation is important from a clinical perspective to ensure patient care follows protocol and also important from a billing perspective to ensure insurance coverage criteria, such as Medical Necessity, are properly addressed. Included in this post is a free copy of a QA checklist with instructions for documentation reviewers to use while reviewing run documents for billing documentation compliance.
If your service does not already have a QA team, we recommend drawing on your most trusted managers or providers to conduct regular reviews of new transport documentation prior to their submission to the billing office. Regular QA review of transports at this stage can be crucial to catching time sensitive errors in signatures, PCS/CMN forms, or missing parts of the narrative/PCR. Addressing issues immediately can help the billing process run smoothly and it creates a constant conversation between your QA team and your crew members about compliant documentation. Using our free checklist can also help your compliance program identify your most common deficiencies which can drive further training and help you focus your internal monitoring on your most problematic areas.
As part of our onboarding process for new clients we review your current documentation-to-billing process and offer suggestions to improve your workflow. A big part of that review is helping new clients develop or improve their own QA program. If you want assistance with your QA program or have any questions about this checklist, you can reach us here.
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Word Version: Ambulance Documentation Quality Assurance Sample Checklist 2024
PDF Version: Ambulance Documentation Quality Assurance Sample Checklist 2024