According to the Stage 2 measure specifications for Computerized Provider Order Entry, only “licensed healthcare professionals” may enter orders into an EHR if the order is to count for Meaningful Use: “Any licensed healthcare professionals and credentialed medical assistants, can enter orders into the medical record for purposes of including the order in the numerator for the objective of CPOE if they can originate the order per state, local and professional guidelines. Credentialing for a medical assistant must come from an organization other than the organization employing the medical assistant.”
For offices who are participating in Meaningful Use, the issue of credentialed vs. non-credentialed staff generally arises based on how EHR’s calculate the CPOE numbers for the official reports. To meet the Stage 2 measure, only 60% of medication orders, 30% of lab, and 30% of radiology orders have to be entered in the EHR by a credentialed healthcare professional. However, the EHR’s usually provide no way to differentiate credentialed or non-credentialed staff for this measure, forcing a practice to credential ALL staff who enter orders in the computer or risk failing a Meaningful Use audit.
If a practice is currently using non-credentialed medical assistants to enter lab, medication, or radiology orders in the EHR, these staff members can be certified, registered, or otherwise “credentialed” though a large number of organizations and programs. The only requirement for Meaningful Use is that they cannot be credentialed by the organization that employs them (so a practice or hospital cannot just create their own credentialing program for their staff).
The AAMA is probably the largest and most recognized certifying organization, but there are many others, all of which are valid to meet this requirement. The AAMA also now offers a credentialing program specifically to address this Meaningful Use requirement, called the “Assessment-Based Recognition in Order Entry (ABR-OE).”
Practices can also check with medical assisting education programs in their area to see which certifying organizations the programs use or recommend.
Editor’s Note: Subsequent to the publication of this article, CMS has renamed the “Meaningful Use” programs and MIPS “Advancing Care Information” category to “Promoting Interoperability”.
