Are you new to credentialing? It happens. Most of the individuals I know in this field fell into it. It’s not a well-known profession, so it’s not exactly what a kid would tell you they aspire to it. Would you have? Hey, the 8-year-old kid in you. "What do you want to be when you grow up?" The kid stands proudly and says, “I want to be a credentialing manager.” Or, let’s start from the beginning. “I want to be a credentialing specialist,” I remember how I started in this field over 30 years ago. I was handed a manila folder with a couple of pieces of paper that turned out to be an application and asked to get this guy credentialed. “What?” was what I wanted to respond, but silly me said, “Okay.” And I began to make phone calls, run-down halls looking for people with answers, and eventually got a completed file to the committee for approval. “Committee?”
Going into credentialing is usually a wild card situation. Occasionally, someone may get the opportunity to observe the profession from another department or a family member, like my daughter, who is following in my footsteps. Otherwise, you end up in the profession somehow, and most of us fall in love with it. Why? Because we are helping people and protecting people if we do our jobs right. Sometimes we don’t know what to do, though, making it hard to do it right. That’s why I condensed a little guide of credentialing elements everyone needs to know about if you are in credentialing, especially if you are not in a big organization. Maybe you have the responsibility of helping a group practice get started. So, how do you get started? After I compiled the guide, I put together a little workbook with questions, ensuring that you review and assess your practice or organization on all fronts. Initially, I wrote this with physicians in mind, those who are starting their own practice. But then I realized the staff needed this information the most. Setting up a practice can be overwhelming, so the members of your team are the ones who need to know all the minute details to help that practice be successful.
Get your copies today if you are new on the team responsible for credentialing and possibly a doctor undertaking the adventure of starting a new practice. I think you will like the title. It’s called “Don’t Risk Treating Your Patients for Free.” Yeah, it's a little guide that can save you big bucks. Let me know if you like it and need help avoiding that risk.