The Joint Commission Policy Statement
Heart Healthcare is committed to providing a higher standard of service and to the delivery of safe, quality patient care. Heart Healthcare complies with the Joint Commission’s Standards for Healthcare Staffing Services. As our customer, you can have confidence that the processes within Heart Healthcare support that the supplemental staff working in your organization have met the requirements established by the Joint Commission. To assure compliance with the Joint Commission Standards for Healthcare Staffing Services, Heart Healthcare provides the customer a written description of the following service features:
Subcontractors
Heart Healthcare will not engage subcontractors to provide Assigned Providers unless agreed to in advance by the customer.
Floating
Assigned Providers may only be placed in assignments that match the job description for which Heart Healthcare assigns them; if an Assigned Provider is asked to float to another department with the customer, the department must be a like department or unit, and the float provider must have demonstrated previous competency and have the appropriate certifications, credentials for that department/unit. Assigned Providers should only be floated to areas of comparable clinical diagnoses and acuities.
Competency Review
It is the responsibility of Heart Healthcare to conduct and finalize the pre-employment assessment of the Assigned Provider’s competence based on the techniques, procedures, technology, and skills needed to provide care, treatment, and services to the populations served by the customer upon completion of Heart Healthcare's orientation.
It shall be the responsibility of the customer to cooperate in a review or evaluation of each Assigned Provider, relative to the provider’s ability to perform specific job functions upon completion of the provider’s assignment or shift. Heart Healthcare relies on the customer’s feedback to accurately assess and reassess the competence of the Assigned Provider on an ongoing basis based on the customer’s report of clinical performance.
Orientation of Providers
Heart Healthcare will provide all new providers with an orientation to the company’s policies and procedures. It shall be the responsibility of the customer to orient assigned providers to the facility and its rules and regulations and to acquaint them with the facility policies and procedures, including dress code, physical layout, and equipment, and to validate the competency and ability of the Assigned Provider to properly use equipment.
Providers and Independent Contractors
As the provider of staffing services, Heart Healthcare will be the employer of Assigned Providers and shall not, by reason of their temporary assignment with the customer through Heart Healthcare, become providers of the customer. At its sole discretion, Heart Healthcare reserves the right to utilize Independent Contractors in addition to its providers, to assist in the provision of all agreed-upon Healthcare Supplemental Staffing services.
Incident, Error, Tracking System
Upon notification of Incidents and/or Errors, Heart Healthcare shall document and track all unexpected incidents, including errors, sentinel events, and other events, such as injuries and safety hazards related to the care and services provided, utilizing its data-gathering tools. Information gathered, tracked, and analyzed is to be shared and reported appropriately to customers, regulatory bodies, and the Joint Commission as required.
Communicating Occupational Safety Hazards/Events
It shall be the responsibility of the customer to notify Heart Healthcare within 24 hours of the event; any competency issues, incidents, and/or complaints related to the Assigned Provider and/or Heart Healthcare. The customer agrees to initiate communication with Heart Healthcare whenever an incident/injury report related to the Assigned Provider is completed.
Requirements for Staff Specified
The requirements for staff sent to the customer by Heart Healthcare are to be determined by the customer as part of the written agreement between the two parties. It is Heart Healthcare's obligation to comply with the requirements of the customer by supplying staff that have the documented competencies, credentials, health screening, and experience to satisfy the requirements specified by the customer in order to deliver safe care to the population being served.
Conflicts of Interest
Heart Healthcare, to the best of its ability, identifies conflicts of interest. Heart Healthcare discloses all conflicts of interest to its clients. Heart Healthcare annually reviews its relationships and its healthcare providers’ relationships with vendors, clients, competitors, and regulatory entities to determine conflicts of interest.
When conflicts of interest arise, Heart Healthcare discloses this conflict of interest when appropriate to whichever client may be involved or affected. Heart Healthcare enforces that internal employees of Heart Healthcare are not permitted to maintain additional employment, accept gifts (other than those of nominal value), or to allow payment on their behalf of any travel, living, or entertainment expenses by any person or organization currently doing business with or seeking to conduct business with Heart Healthcare, unless approved by the client involved or potentially involved.
Staff Matching Requirements
Heart Healthcare shall verify the Assigned Provider’s licensure, certification, education, and work experience to assure they are competent and possess the skills and experience that match requirements for the assignment. Matching the Assigned Provider’s licensure, certification, education, and work experience to assure they are competent and possess the skills and experience matching the specified requirements of the assignment may include the use of new grad practitioners upon the request or approval of the customer.
The Heart Healthcare office, located in Sioux City, Iowa, is open Monday through Friday from the hours of 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Our local telephone number is (712) 509-7373. Outside of normal business hours, in the event of an emergency, please also contact us at (712) 509-7373.
In the event of an emergency, natural disaster, or other uncontrollable event, Heart Healthcare will continue to provide service to you through our corporate network from a location where phones and computers are functional. Heart Healthcare, will do everything possible to support you in meeting your needs during crisis situations. A copy of our Emergency Management Plan is available upon request.
Our goal is to always provide you with a consistent level of service. If for any reason you are dissatisfied with our service or the service provided by one of our healthcare professionals, we encourage you to contact the local manager to discuss the issue. Heart Healthcare has processes in place to resolve customer complaints in an effective and efficient manner. If the resolution does not meet your expectation, we encourage you to call the Heart Healthcare corporate office at (712) 509-7373. A corporate representative will work with you to resolve your concern. Any individual or organization that has a concern about the quality and safety of patient care delivered by Heart Healthcare healthcare professionals, which has not been addressed by Heart Healthcare management, is encouraged to contact the Joint Commission at www.jointcommission.org orby calling their toll free number at 1 (800) 994-6610. Heart Healthcare demonstrates this commitment by taking no retaliatory or disciplinary action against providers when they do report safety or quality of care concerns to the Joint Commission.
