A partnership approach to streamlined medical and dental credentialing

Fifteen public health services joined forces in 2020 to create a newly formed regional partnership. Each service was working independently to meet their governance responsibilities and legislative requirements. This included medical credentialing which aims to ensure their Senior Medical and Dental Staff are qualified, competent, and operating within their scope of practice.

The administrative load of credentialing management was already cumbersome and difficult to maintain. Services used different legacy systems, spreadsheets or paper-based practices with no standardised systems in place.

Stakeholders of the new health service partnership set up a working group to address the challenge of credentialing management. Medical service directors, credentialing officers, and representatives from Safer Care Victoria were involved. They knew they needed support to efficiently process the growing number of crossover Medical Practitioners, and that duplication and variability were frustrating for all concerned.

Key challenges were identified as:

Disparate systems: Siloed credentialing systems meant repetitive data entry and inconsistencies.

Time-consuming processes: Labour-intensive credentialing consumed valuable time and resources that could be better allocated.

Lack of flexibility: Current systems were unable to adapt to evolving regulatory requirements and standards, leading to delays and potential non-compliance issues.

Lack of security: Legacy systems posed security and data integrity risks. Unwieldly spreadsheets and papers potentially exposed them to data breaches and compliance violations.

The working group considered joined up meetings in which each service would submit their practitioners to be credentialed. But they quickly realised this wasn’t a practical approach.

Something else was needed to transform their fragmented processes into an integrated, efficient, transparent system that aimed to eliminate the administrative burden, enhance security and minimise risk.

But finding and implementing a unified credentialing system that would fit the needs of each Health Services presented a significant challenge. Fortunately, the stakeholders’ commitment to innovation positioned them to tackle this challenge head on.

The stakeholders knew that pursuing new technology would be key to this transformation. They also knew that merging 15 health services into a single credentialing system was quite a task.

After tendering the project to possible providers, and a series of demonstrations and conversations, it quickly became clear that Cgov was the right fit. The stakeholders were impressed with Cgov’s innovative approach and can-do attitude. At their first meeting, Kathleen from Cgov said, ‘Tell us what you want, and we’ll make it happen.’ And that’s exactly what Cgov did.

A committee drawn from the initial working group met weekly. Using their materials, workflows, insights and requirements, they reached a consensus on the specifications required. Cgov worked side-by-side with the committee to clarify the specifics and configured their no-code platform to meet the needs of each stakeholder.

Within just six months the platform successfully went live in all 15 locations.

The impact of partnering with Cgov was transformative. It’s brought significant improvements in the efficiency of medical credentialing across the entire region, with most notable achievements including:

Transparency, efficiency and standardisation

The platform introduced uniformity and consistency in credentialing across all 15 health service providers, marking a significant milestone in their collaborative journey.

Teamwork and collaboration

The centralised database facilitated seamless information sharing and peer support, enhancing teamwork and collaboration amongst hospitals.

Time-saving benefits

The platform reduced the administrative burden for both practitioners and hospital administrators, streamlining the credentialing process and eliminating duplication of effort.

‘The hyperlink feature is really helpful. It allows us to send providers forms to complete and their data goes straight into system. This feature has also the increased and sped up referee response rates,’ reported the Partnership Manager.

Budgetary certainty

Cgov is a fixed fee platform meaning that even with multiple users processing large volumes of applications, the cost remains the same.

Flexibility and integration

Cgov’s solution proved to be adaptive to evolving regulations, seamlessly integrating with key organisations, including AHPRA and the Australian Immunisation Register.

Enhanced data security

By providing a secure, paperless environment, Cgov’s platform assisted to mitigate risks associated with legacy systems, and reduced exposure to security breaches.

Improved clinical governance

The standardised process, regulatory updates, and automated alerts for license expiries and renewals increased confidence and reassuring oversight.

‘It gives us day-to-day certainty and even more so when the audit comes around,’ said the Partnership Manager.

Partnership and ownership

The highly configurable no-code solution empowers users with autonomy and the flexibility to manage workflows according to their needs.

‘It’s not a locked, off-the-shelf solution. The team at Cgov listen to our feedback and continually improves the platform, so every user benefits,’ explained the Project Lead.

The regional health service partnership has been thrilled to work with Cgov. In just six months, they have successfully transitioned from rigid and fragmented credentialing systems to a collaborative, digital platform that’s efficient, transparent and secure. The process of requesting, gathering, validating and monitoring practitioner information has never been easier. Cgov has streamlined all credentialing admin and documentation storage in one single source of truth.