WESTMED - News Article

The Westchester Medical Group has received NCQA Physician Organization (PO) Certification in Credentialing and Recredentialing, making this the fourth measure of distinction for the multi-specialty practice from the National Committee for Quality Assurance, a private, nonprofit organization that is dedicated to improving health-care quality.

NCQA’s PO Certification evaluates how well a medical practice takes steps to ensure the caliber of the physicians in its practice. WMG voluntarily opted into an NCQA review process to evaluate its ability to meet NCQA standards in credentialing and recredentialing.

Credentialing and recredentialing is a process that WMG goes through to select and retain qualified physicians who will provide coordinated, efficient, quality care to its patients. The process involves verifying the doctors’ qualifications and practice history “before we bring them on, including education, training, residency, licenses and if any malpractice cases are on the record,” said Barney Newman, MD, WMG’s medical director.

Individual health insurers also require credentialing for all doctors participating in their plans. Mayda Davis, Director of Professional Services, explained that due to its NCQA certification, WMG can be a credentialing organization, meaning that insurance carriers can delegate credentialing to WMG. “This steamlines the process so that qualified doctors are available to our patients faster,” she said.

“Achieving PO Certification from NCQA demonstrates that The Westchester Medical Group has the systems, process and personnel in place to continuously improve the quality of care it delivers,”said Margaret E. O’Kane, NCQA president.

NCQA surveys are rigorous on- and off-site evaluations conducted by a team of physicians and managed care experts. A national oversight committee of physicians analyzes the team’s findings and determines certification based on the PO’s performance compared to NCQA standards.

The WMG has already been recognized by NCQA for Physician Practice Connections®, the only national program to recognize physicians who organize their practices around quality care using electronic systems to assist them in preventing medical errors. The practice has also received recognition from the ADA/NCQA Diabetes Physician Recognition Program for high-quality care of diabetes patients and AHA/ASA/NCQA Heart/Stroke Physician Recognition Program for high-quality care of patients with heart disease.

The Westchester Medical Group is a rapidly growing physician-owned and managed multi-specialty group practice. It is staffed by a team of over 150 physicians dedicated to providing coordinated, efficient, quality care in central and lower Westchester County. It has locations in White Plains, Purchase, Rye, Scarsdale, Eastchester, Larchmont, and Yonkers. The practice is widely known for its effective integration of high-efficiency business practices and cutting-edge technologies to continually improve health care delivery to Westchester residents.