The State Medical Board of Ohio (SMBO) released its 2016 fiscal year (FY16) annual report on August 1 in accordance with Ohio statute. In addition to an analysis of revenue and expenditures, the report provides a glimpse of the continuous quality improvement taking place at the SMBO.
During FY16, the SMBO made a concentrated effort to reduce the inventory of complaints by streamlining the process and addressing complaints that had been in a backlog. As a result, inventory of open complaints has decreased 52% in the past 19 months. As staff increased efficiencies and processes, the volume of cases moving forward to citation, adjudication (including settlement), and formal action has increased. From July 2015 to June 2016, the SMBO saw a 26% increase in the volume of formal actions against licensees.
The past year also included a redesign of the Quality Intervention Program (QIP). The QIP focuses on cases in which poor practice patterns are beginning to emerge or the licensee has failed to keep up with changes in practice standards, with the intention of corrective action before rising to the level of a discipline for the licensee. During FY16, the SMBO eliminated the bimonthly, in-person format. QIP cases are now contracted to a single physician reviewer, and are generally resolved in less than 60 days.
- MD/DO license processing backlogs have been cleared and are now issued 29% faster since December 2014
- Expedited licenses are routinely issued 38% faster than turnaround was in January 2015
- New authority to levy fines in tandem with formal action against licensees
- Median speed for public record request completion is just one business day.
Impairment and prescribing issues remain the most common reasons for disciplinary actions outlined in the annual report. Although Ohio has taken great strides to address opioid misuse, there is still much work to be done. To supplement efforts, the SMBO teamed up with the Governor’s Cabinet Opioid Action Team to create an educational training module for all prescribers in Ohio, not just licensees of the SMBO. To date, the video has been viewed by more than 10,000 professionals.
Complete data from the SMBO’s FY16 annual report is available online.