Mission:

The mission of the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice is to protect the public’s health and safety by assuring that the people who practice medicine or as an allied health professional are competent, ethical practitioners with the necessary knowledge and skills appropriate to their title and role.

Statewide Outcome(s):

Medical Practice, Board of supports the following statewide outcome(s).

Minnesotans are safe.

Context:

The board regulates the practice of medicine and seven other health practices (Acupuncturists, Athletic Trainers, Naturopathic Doctors, Physician Assistants, Telemedicine, Traditional Midwives and Respiratory Care Therapists.)

Medical practice regulation exists to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public in their receipt of medical services.  The Board of Medical Practice holds physicians and allied health professionals accountable for conduct based on legal, ethical and professional standards and achieves its mandate of public protection by outlining these standards and issuing a license to practice medicine or registration to practice in an allied health profession.  Once a license is issued, the Board’s job continues by monitoring licensees’ and registrants’ compliance with state laws and taking action against licensees/registrants who have exhibited unsafe practice and present a risk of harm to the public.  Primary customers are members of the public, employers, applicants, licensees, medical education programs, and agencies of local, state and federal government.  The Board is funded by fees and receives no general fund dollars.  Minnesota Statutes section 214. 06, subd. 1(a) compels the Board to collect fees in the amount sufficient to cover expenditures.

Strategies:

The Board provides for public safety and contributes to the above statewide outcomes by:

·         Assuring an ethical and competent medical workforce through comprehensive credentials review;

·         Establishing and conducting a complaint investigation process that is expedient and just;

·         Upholding standards for medical education approval through consultation and survey;

·         Exchanging data with state, national and federal agencies and information systems;

·         Collaborating in statewide initiatives on medical practice, education and patient safety;

·         Maximizing technology for services and paperless meetings;

·         Collaborating with other health licensing boards to operate an inter-board monitoring program for health professionals whose practice is impaired due to illness and a voluntary cooperative administrative services unit to perform common accounting, purchasing, human resources and technology functions.

The Board engages with other state agencies to assure congruence on issues involving health care delivery, patient safety issues, and coalitions of health care providers and enforcement agencies to identify best practices for addressing violations of the law such as substandard practice and drug diversion.

Results:

The Board is committed to performance measurement and quality improvement and collects data to analyze self-performance and compare to other like boards to determine areas for improvement.

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has ranked Minnesota among the top three states in the quality of health care offered since 2006, with Minnesota physician office practice ranked as high as fourth in the nation. Minnesota physicians have been judged by qualitative measures as providing quality health care. The screening of applicants for licensure is thorough, and electronic verification of training and education has expedited the process.

Performance Measures Notes:

For all data, previous is FY 2009-2010, and current is FY 2011-2012.  Source: Board of Medical Practice ALIMS database.

The design of the board’s database and internal processes allows the board to adapt to changes in practice standards and technological advancements.

Useful Links:

Medical Board Website:  http://mn.gov/health-licensing-boards/medical-practice/?agency=BMP

Medical Practice Act:  http://mn.gov/health-licensing-boards/medical-practice/laws-and-rules/practice-acts/

Licensure Statistics:  http://mn.gov/health-licensing-boards/medical-practice/licensees/statistical-data/index.jsp

Report to the Legislature in Compliance with Minnesota Statutes Section 3D.06 (Sunset Review) 2012:

http://mn.gov/health-licensing-boards/images/BMP%2520Sunset%2520Review%2520Report%25202012.pdf