North Carolina revises uniform credentialing application
The North Carolina Department of Insurance (NCDOI) took a great step forward this week to support physicians’ health by revising its Uniform Credentialing Application (UCA) (PDF) and removing intrusive mental health questions and stigmatizing language.
The effort was led by the North Carolina Clinician and Physician Retention and Well-being (NCCPRW) Consortium and included collaboration with the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation (DLBHF) and North Carolina Association of Health Plans (NCAHP). The effort is part of a statewide effort between the Consortium and DLBHF to support the state’s hospitals and health systems in improving workplace policies and practices that reduce burnout, normalize help-seeking and strengthen professional well-being.
The revisions made to the UCA now focus on current impairment only for medical, behavioral or mental health conditions. This is consistent with recommendations from the AMA (PDF), Federation of State Medical Boards, CDC/NIOSH, National Association of Medical Staff Services, Federation of State Physician Health Programs and many other national organizations.
“This is the first step of a series of meaningful changes to protect those who care for us each and every day,” said North Carolina Medical Society Executive Vice President and CEO Chip Baggett, JD. “I’m proud of the ongoing work of the North Carolina Clinician and Physician Retention and Well-being Consortium to make North Carolina the best place to practice medicine.”
The NCCPRW Consortium and DLBHF encourage all hospitals and health systems in North Carolina to review their credentialing applications and make changes consistent with recommendations to ensure applications are free from intrusive mental health questions and stigmatizing language. The NCDOI’s application is used by many of the state’s hospitals to credential their medical staff. The AMA provided technical support during the UCA revision process and strongly encourages all hospitals and health systems to remove stigmatizing language about mental health and substance use disorders. This work reflects Phase 1 of the ALL IN: Caring for North Carolina’s Caregivers initiative, a three-phase approach to support the state’s hospitals and health systems in improving workplace policies and practices that reduce burnout, normalize help-seeking and strengthen professional well-being.
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