Telehealth Compliance
The telehealth industry is one of the most rapidly advancing and expanding sectors of the medical space. Telehealth’s increasing prominence reflects the social and economic changes brought by the pandemic, resulting in the industry’s adoption of new healthcare methodologies and technologies, as well as the influx of new participants holding varying levels of specialization. Thus, effective HR management of telehealth personnel and teams is paramount, particularly with regards to regulating certifications.
Certification management is the process of refining and maintaining an organization’s credentials and showcasing its personnel’s education and training. This process is essential for telehealth businesses, since a comprehensive record of credentials can promote the firm’s image to the public and can provide a significant advantage to telehealth practitioners against their competitors. For Human Resources (HR) executives, proper certification management enables them to assess the adequacy of their workforce in terms of experience, skills, and knowledge to perform the required work.
In the face of not investing in a suitable certification management solution, telehealth businesses are inherently exposed to a multitude of risks. Such risks vastly vary in scope and severity, ranging from noncompliance with mandated regulations, to loss of reputation among consumers, to the potential litigation. To begin, not having the necessary information at hand to verify each staff member’s certifications will lead to inefficiencies when contenting to meet state or federal legislations. Moreover, an organization’s failure to provide valid and accurate credentials to the pertinent governing bodies will open gaping channels for sanctioned.
In terms of reputation and consumer loss, an inability to adequately manage certifications signals a deficiency in a telehealth firm’s procedures and professionalism. Every consumer looking for healthcare services seeks for reliable organizations that can demonstrate proficiency in providing them; if a telehealth company cannot present their credential certifications, then it will be difficult to acquire consumer trust. Such a notion is especially poignant in the post-pandemic era, in which continuing to offer quality healthcare services will be a central tenant of survival.
The lack of certification management systems can even result in litigation, as vulnerable consumer populations, such as those of the elderly, are increasingly subject to moral, physical, and financial exploitation. Organizations that fail to provide their workforce’s qualifications and certifications leave their customers vulnerable to unacceptable and unnecessary deterioration of their health, as well as increase the possibility of costly lawsuits.
For HR executives to protect their telehealth businesses from such risks, specialized software should be deployed to administer certifications. Such a certification management system is essential for attaining three fundamental objectives. Firstly, the program must promote swift access to pertinent certifications across the entire organization. Furthermore, it should drastically aid audit capabilities by tracking which credentials are set to expire and which employees should be updated. Last, but not least, it is essential for the system to offer a comprehensive tracking record for state and federal governing bodies to reference.
Overall, telehealth business owners should recognize the invaluable benefit of implementing a certification management system to both their firm’s bottom line and their personnel’s security. With such, HR executives can receive the peace of mind they need, while they focus on the more tasking aspects of manpower management.
