Speaker Profile
ELIZABETH A. SNELSON
Elizabeth A. Snelson represents medical staff across the country, focusing on medical staff bylaws and credentialing, and works for medical societies on medical staff issues. A frequent speaker on medical staff legal issues, Ms. Snelson presents at medical staff leadership retreats, and in programs sponsored by state medical staff services associations and medical societies, the American Medical Association, the American Bar Association, and other organizations. She is Past President of the American Society of Medical Association Counsel, Vice President of the ABA’s Physician Issues Interest Group, and serves Of Counsel to the Minneapolis law firm of Lockridge GrindalNauen. She was a member of the Joint Commission’s MS 01.01.01 Task Force. Her articles on medical staff legal issues have appeared in various publications. She is the author of The Physicians’ Guide to Medical Staff Organization Bylaws, published by AMA, the Massachusetts Medical Society’s Model Medical Staff Bylaws, the North Carolina Medical Society’s Model Medical Staff Bylaws, and other model medical staff documents.
Modernizing Medical Staff Bylaws
Sometimes hospitals fall for a complicated re-do of medical staff documents that fall apart after the consultants leave the building. Or the medical staff bylaws have developed into a patchwork quilt of quick-fix additions created to respond to a plan of correction or accreditation survey report. Even updated bylaws can be improved by isolating processes to expose inefficiencies and inconsistencies.Th..
National Practitioner Data Bank Expanded Reporting Parameters
Hospitals must file a National Practitioner Data Bank report on any physician’s surrender of privileges if an investigation is underway. This has always been a Data Bank reporting requirement, intended to discourage plea bargains which allowed physicians to avoid being reported if they agreed to waive hearing rights. Under the new Guidebook, expanded descriptions of “investigation” and “surrender” stretch w..