A successful – and profitable – anesthesia department requires a symbiotic relationship between the facility and its professionals. This is exactly what our services can help you achieve.
The following are some common questions we've received from clients over the years. Our hope is that you better understand how we can assist you with your anesthesia service needs by gaining insight from those we've helped in the past.
How long does it take you – on average – to fill a position from the time a client contacts you?
It takes us an average of 1-10 days to find a candidate for the facility needing locums. The facility then has to credential them to extend privileges; which could extend this to 30-45 days.
A Major Advantage of Partnering with Coastal
We are Joint Commission Certified and have completed the credential process for clients. This limits the amount of work facilities like yours have to do to privilege them.
Your Own Personal Healthcare Staffing Consultant
When you partner with us, you will also be assigned your own personal staffing consultant who will assist you every step of the way.
We’re Here for You 24/7
We also have an on-call person available 24/7 to assist you with any emergency staffing (or related) needs.
Can you give me an example of the type of "anesthesia management" services you provide?
Here’s a common example:
Let’s say an out-patient facility, office practice (OBGYN, plastic surgeon, dental office), or endoscopy center is in need of anesthesia services. Quite simply, we can provide it to them – from soup to nuts.
We provide qualified and credentialed staff. We also do the billing for the services provided – which can be quite complex.
Speaking of anesthesia billing, are you in or out of network with payors?
We provide an added advantage here, as we are in-network with most payors (insurance companies). We’re different from many other anesthesia management companies, as many often bill out of network.
Happier Patients; More Efficient Billing
Out-of-network billing causes many patients to become upset because it often means more out-of –pocket expense for them.
This is a leading question we are asked when we consult with groups– they want to ensure that their members will never have excessive cost for anesthesia services. Hence, their number one concern is ensuring that we’re going to be in network with the payors they are in-network with.
Are your providers local?
We currently provide anesthesia staffing and management services in over 45 locations across the country. Our goal is to have local providers for all the centers we partner with.
A Partner; Not a Contractor
While we are a contracted service, we like to partner with clients, functioning as an integral part of their team. We believe this team approach works best for both facilities and staff.
As part of a team, we can add more intrinsic, ongoing value. For example, when we become your partner, we ensure that you’re always in compliance with state and federal guidelines for anesthesiology.
Do you have quality checks in place; what type of quality assurance do you provide?
We stand behind our anesthesia services and offer quality assurance for all of them.
Of course, we provide anesthesia services according to all state and federal regulations. To ensure this, we meet with each of our centers on a quarterly basis to review quality assurance reports and to discuss any changes to anesthesia regulations and how they may impact their anesthesia service offerings.
Do you offer any type of anesthesiology consulting services?
Our medical director is an anesthesiologist and is available 24/7 for consultation with anesthesia professionals and/or physicians.
What is the main type of facility you fill positions for (eg, large hospitals, smaller medical offices; etc.?
We provide locums coverage for large and small hospitals.
We provide management services for small hospitals.
We provide management services to offices (eg, OBGYN, dental, plastic surgeon, urology), out-patient surgery centers, and endoscopy centers.
In short, if you’re a medical facility/center in need of anesthesia services, we can probably help.
On average, how many years of experience do your anesthesiology professionals have?
All professionals we contract with must have at least three years of independent practice experience, meaning they have worked in a non-supervised setting for at least three years.
Do you offer permanent placement of anesthesia professionals?
Our policy is to only offer permanent placement of new grads and those who have less than three years of experience.
On average, how long do the assignments you staff last?
We have daily locums, weekly assignments for vacation relief, and those lasting several months for extended leave (eg, maternity). These are usually at contracted hospitals.
As for healthcare organizations — we contract with anesthesia facilities for one to three-year terms. Our contracts with facilities for anesthesia management are renewed annually. Because we tailor our anesthesia services to each facility’s specific needs, clients continue to renew their agreements with us year after year.
All professionals are engaged as independent contractors.
What happens if a client (a facility) or an applicant (healthcare professional) is unhappy with an assignment?
If a client is unhappy with someone we place with them, we work to replace that person as quickly as possible.
This rarely happens, but in instances where, for example, a professional is “clinically proficient,” but their personality just doesn’t fit the culture of the facility, we take this very seriously. And again, we work to quickly replace this person with a better fit.
At Coastal, we realize that every professional we place represents us – from their clinical abilities to how they carry themselves professionally. If a client is unhappy, we do everything we can to rectify the situation.
Will my facility have to pay a subsidy?
We do our best to work with facilities to eliminate the need to pay a subsidy. This is done by completing an anesthesia services feasibility study based on your payor mix, the number of rooms you are running each day, and the volume of cases per room.
We can meet with your team and discuss options that would help eliminate the need for a subsidy.
How do you select healthcare professionals for a center?
1) Engage: The first thing we do is actively engage our clients (the facility/center) in the selection process. We’ve found that this aides in finding not only a great clinical fit, but also a good cultural fit.
2) Experience: As mentioned above, all anesthesia professionals we contract with must have at least three (3) years of independent practice experience.
3) Geographically Desirable: Our goal is to provide professionals that are local.
Do you offer any type of trial period?
We will offer a two-week trial at your request. We find this works well for those facilities using conscious sedation and considering the use of Propofol anesthesia.
What is the physician's liability for CRNAs?
This is a frequently asked question — and an often misunderstand issue — by many healthcare service organizations; we dig a little deeper to help potential clients gain a fuller understanding. Learn more about a physician’s liability for CRNAs.
We require our anesthesia professionals to carry their own professional liability insurance ($1/$3 mil). And of course, we as the anesthesia management company carry professional liability insurance.
What is your stance on the Anti-Kickback Statute?
We go to great lengths to ensure the anesthesia services we provide are done so in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations, including the federal Anti-Kickback Statute.
Hence, adhering to this rule of law, we don’t offer supplies for a discount or at no-cost, in exchange for referrals or recommendations to purchase services reimbursable under government healthcare programs.