‘Lunch & Learn’ [Healthcare Compliance Tips]

Launch a ‘Lunch & Learn’ program.

We have seen significant success with enacting a ‘Lunch and Learn’ program.  Not only does it give employees a chance to spend time together in a group setting away from job duties, but it also builds team camaraderie.

It fosters an atmosphere of learning from a speaker, or even a video and afterward allows an open forum for questions and concerns applying to compliance.  This also helps employees to gauge the knowledge of their co-workers to see where they can learn from each other.

For example, there may be someone in the room that has proficient knowledge in HIPAA and can show others how it is done.  But, this probably was not known until they were placed in a group setting to learn everyone’s qualifications.

Our suggestion is to schedule a ‘Lunch and Learn’ monthly or quarterly regarding a hot topic in compliance.

Here are a few topic suggestions to get you started:

• The difference between abuse and fraud (with examples tailored to your specialty).
• Overview of healthcare laws.
• OIG risk areas (i.e., coding and billing, reasonable and necessary services).
• Office policies (i.e., workstation security, internet access).
• PHI refresher (i.e., minimum necessary).

You can ask employees to provide ideas openly or anonymously about the speaker or lunch menu preferences.  This will bring a unified front because everyone will have a chance to contribute to the program.

Last, you can go one step further and invite another practice (with the same specialty) to join your program.  This will allow you to discuss trends and ideas, in the form of benchmarking, that can be used within your practice.

**The opinions and observations from the group/author are not a promise to exempt your practice from fines and penalties.  Research, modify, and tailor the advice to fit your specialty.