How to Form a Hospital Compliance Committee (Step-by-Step)

  • By: Josh Palmer
  • August 2, 2023
Hospital Compliance Committee
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Forming a hospital compliance committee is essential for any health care facility that wishes to remain in good standing with regulatory bodies. It is the first step to ensuring your organization complies with all applicable laws, regulations, and policies.

A hospital compliance committee helps ensure a facility meets all standards and requirements necessary to remain operational. For instance, it offers SOC 2 Type II compliance to protect patients’ information security and privacy.

You also want to ensure your board meetings comply with HIPAA and other regulations. But let’s face it, this can be difficult to accomplish alone. That’s why it’s important to have board meeting management software that powers secure and compliant boardroom operations.

What is a Hospital Compliance Committee?

A hospital compliance committee proves essential in monitoring and ensuring an organization stays compliant with all relevant laws, regulations, and policies. It also helps identify potential risks and develop strategies to mitigate them. Think of it as a governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) body. 

The committee should comprise members from different departments, such as legal, finance, operations, and IT. Committee members should meet regularly to review any changes in the environment and any potential risks to the organization.

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How to Form a Hospital Compliance Committee

It takes effective planning and organization to form a successful hospital compliance committee. These steps cover the basics:

1. Define Purpose and Objectives

First, you need a comprehensive board committee charter that outlines your unique purpose, goals, and objectives. The charter should clearly state the committee’s purpose and how it will help the organization stay compliant. For instance, if your goal is to ensure all board meetings are HIPAA-compliant, the charter should state that.

2. Establish Committee Structure

Next, decide how the compliance committee should be set up. Questions to consider include:

  • Who will be in charge? 
  • How many members will the committee consist of?
  • Who will carry out specific tasks? 
  • Will there be small groups within the committee to focus on a specific compliance program?
     

3. Appoint Committee Members

Once you have an idea of who should serve on the committee, it’s time to find members. Look for individuals with relevant expertise and experience in compliance matters. Also, seek out a diverse mix of people from different departments who can contribute uniquely.

4. Develop Compliance Policies and Procedures

The hospital compliance committee should develop and maintain comprehensive policies and procedures tailored to the organization’s needs. These need to be regularly reviewed and updated to ensure they remain current. The committee should also provide regular training for staff on the importance of compliance and any new policies or procedures.

5. Establish Communication and Reporting Procedures

Finally, the committee should have an effective communication and reporting system. This could be a secure messaging platform for members to communicate with each other or meetings held regularly to review any new risks or compliance issues that must be addressed. And the communication and reporting should extend beyond the hospital committee itself. For instance, the audit committee should be able to coordinate with the hospital compliance committee on various matters and receive regular reports.

OnBoard Powers Effective Committees

Whether you serve on a corporate governance committee or a hospital compliance committee, OnBoard provides the essential tools to help manage secure and compliant boardroom operations. From simple yet efficient meetings administration to comprehensive document management and collaboration tools, OnBoard helps board committees stay compliant and organized.

OnBoard’s top-line features and capabilities include:

  • Track and monitor compliance: OnBoard provides the tools to track and monitor compliance issues within an organization. This includes creating a secure repository of documents and materials related to operations, legal, finance, and other departments. It also allows you to automatically purge all notes and annotations when board books get archived.
  • Foster collaboration: With OnBoard’s collaboration features, including but not limited to Zoom integration, notes & annotations, and auto-save, you can easily share and discuss ideas, no matter where you are.
  • Automate meeting preparation: OnBoard automates the tedious task of board meeting preparation — from creating agendas and assigning tasks to sending out reminders and post-meeting follow-ups.
  • Leverage military-grade security and safety: From two-factor authentication to biometric security and everything in between, OnBoard offers the highest level of security to ensure your boardroom data is always protected from outside eyes. 

Forming a hospital compliance committee is an important step for any health care organization looking to create an effective compliance and risk management system. OnBoard’s secure and feature-packed platform provides the tools to ensure efficient and compliant operations in your boardroom.

The purpose-built platform helps you manage operations more efficiently and securely so you can focus on what’s important — making the right decisions for your organization. At OnBoard, we also value integrity and transparency above all else. That’s why our platform is GDPR- and-HIPAA-compliant, ensuring your health care facility is always compliant and risk-free.

But don’t just take our word for it. Download this free board meeting agenda template for a sneak peek into what to expect when you choose OnBoard to help manage boardroom operations.

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About The Author

Josh Palmer
Josh Palmer
Josh Palmer serves as OnBoard's Head of Content. An experienced content creator, his previous roles have spanned numerous industries including B2C and B2B home improvement, healthcare, and software-as-a-service (SaaS). An Indianapolis native and graduate of Indiana University, Palmer currently resides in Fishers, Ind.