A behavioral health organization often must deal with a Corrective Action Plan (CAP). The CAP happens after surveys or audits are conducted when program documents are submitted for approval or at other occurrences. The agency requiring the CAP will identify gaps or missing information that needs to be submitted. Usually, a time frame is necessary for when the CAP will be resolved. What is the best way to tackle a CAP?
Several approaches can be used to conduct a CAP. However, it is best to ask several questions first before starting the process:
1. What is the mindset of the agency or reviewer? When answering a reviewer or auditor's questions for a CAP, you need to know what they want. Their requests may not be explicit; a technical assistance call is often vital to prevent numerous rewrites.
2. Is the deficiency a short-term or long-term problem? For example, a document may be missing from a personnel file, which is an easy fix. However, if the document was omitted due to a lack of oversight of personnel files, it could be a long-term problem. A mechanism should be addressed to prevent the problem from occurring.
3. Is the deficiency an employee problem or a process problem? Suppose an employee misses the deadline for completing a treatment plan; that could be related to the employee's lack of time management. But if the reason for the CAP is due to poor organization on the part of the employees, retraining may be necessary to improve conscientiousness in completing documentation timely.
4. Who will institute the correction and follow up on it? Someone must ensure the problem is fixed now and moving forward. Otherwise, it will stay uncompleted and be open to future deficiencies. An employee can be assigned a task to correct it, and someone must ensure it stays corrected.
5. Is the problem a policy, a document, or something else? The deficiency could mean rewriting or creating a policy or a document. But the deficiency could be related to staff not knowing how to conduct a task, such as clinical work. A system must be in place to keep the change in place.
The more an organization understands what the CAP requires and asks these questions, the more likely it will improve and have fewer difficulties.
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PRAXES is a nationwide behavioral health software, consulting, and training company. No one in the behavioral health industry has a better reputation, and if you give us the chance, we’ll show you why! At PRAXES, our services improve the efficiency and structure of behavioral health agencies serving children and families nationwide. PRAXES brings over 45 years of administrative and clinical expertise. With more than 100 client companies nationwide, we offer the expertise to advance the quality of behavioral health services. We accomplish these goals through our new clinical decision software, our training of best practices, and helping companies meet regulatory standards. At PRAXES, we believe in being creative and fostering new ways to serve children and their families. Our vision is to empower the families our agencies serve with skills that not only improve their functioning, but help them to thrive in their everyday lives. When you give us the chance, you’ll be connected directly to our friendly staff, so you can expect immediate attention to your inquiry. So, don’t wait, call now!
Dan Thorne has unique perspectives on the field of mental health. As a clinician, he has had over 40 years of experience working with clients in the Southern California area. After obtaining his Bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Irvine, he worked with children in the Orange County Juvenile Hall. Here he honed his earliest techniques on at-risk children. After that, he obtained his Master’s degree in Counseling from California State University, Fullerton.
In the 1990’s, Dan turned his attention to the clinical and administrative side of behavioral health organizations. For three years, he was the Assistant Administrator of Starting Point, a chemical dependency facility in Costa Mesa, CA. In 2001, he took an opportunity to be the Director of Harbor View Community Services Center in Long Beach. When he arrived, the Center had only 80 clients and 13 staff. When he left, there were over 400 clients and 75 staff. Dan created several programs through their contract with the Los Angeles County Departments of Mental Health and Child and Family Services. Under his guidance, Harbor View became one of the leading providers of children’s services in Los Angeles County.
While improving the results of the client’s parents at the Center, Dan reflected on his experiences as a parent. His children themselves had special needs such as mental and intellectual challenges, and Dan knew the toll it takes on the parent. In order to help the child, the parent has to be healthy. From this concept, he created his parenting program. After years of refining it, teaching it to his staff at the Center, and then taking the results and comments from these efforts, he became the developer of the current PRAXES program. It is a culmination of Dan’s personal trials and tribulations as a parent along with empirical results and research of over 40 parenting programs.
Our vision at PRAXES is to advance the strength of parents and caregivers of children with special needs (mental health, intellectual, or physical) through education, support, and empowerment. Thus, they can live healthy and functional lives while caring for the child.
Apogee is a clinical decision software designed to help behavioral health practitioners with their treatment and patient engagement. It provides evidence-based and research-based components. Not only do they consist of elements from such practices as Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Seeking Safety, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Functional Behavior Analysis, but also the Intensive Models for Parents, Youth, and Children.
PRAXES has over 30 years of accreditation experience. We know what it takes to get your organization accredited. Whether it’s Joint Commission, CARF, or COA, our team can provide an evaluation of your current status and review the standards which need improvements. We will assist you with the policies, documentation, and training required to be accredited.
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