In a strongly worded message today, the nation’s health care accreditation organization, the Joint Commission, issued a “sentinel alert” that cracks down on rude, demeaning, disruptive and intimidating behavior by physicians and other health care professionals.
In fact, the Joint Commission sounds a bit ticked off about the whole matter, saying such behavior should no longer be tolerated anywhere. They’ve even implemented new rules to address the apparently pervasive problem. Hospitals, home health agencies, outpatient centers and other institutions stand to lose their accreditation if they continue to tolerate this kind of behavior:
Intimidating and disruptive behaviors include overt actions such as verbal outbursts and physical threats, as well as passive activities such as refusing to perform assigned tasks or quietly exhibiting uncooperative attitudes during routine activities. Intimidating and disruptive behaviors are often manifested by health care professionals in positions of power.
Read more about this issue in Thursday’s Business Today.