Tracking Time Spent on Risk Management Tasks Can Demonstrate Value and Justify Change

An article published on September 20, 2013, in the Journal of Healthcare Risk Management detailed a project that evaluated the risk management department staffing in one healthcare organization, providing benchmark data and a way to “objectively provide justifiable staffing levels.” The pilot study, which took place in a healthcare system that provides care in 4 states through 32 acute care facilities, long-term care facilities, and critical access hospitals, evaluated the time spent by risk management staff on 24 specific risk management activities, including accreditation, loss prevention, patient safety, and risk financing. The study found that the facilities had an average of two full-time risk management staff per facility. The researchers evaluated three different levels of risk management professionals: department heads, midlevel practitioners, and administrative staff.