Over the past 20 years, Garry Carneal has helped bring to market over 20 health-related accreditation programs for three different organizations. He is best known for his 9-year tenure at URAC, where he helped the accreditation organization diversify from one accreditation program to 18.
Carneal’s latest project in the accreditation field involves supporting RadSite and quality-benchmarking for imaging systems. Since 2010, Carneal has held several leadership roles in RadSite.
Founded in 2005, RadSite initially focused on a payer-based network credentialing program, called the RadSite Assessment Program (RAP). Through RAP, RadSite has reviewed about 60,000 imaging systems both low tech and high tech imaging in 25,000 imaging provider locations. Today, RadSite is focusing on the MIPAA Accreditation Program (MAP) for high tech imaging, and has several new accreditation programs under development. In 2013, RadSite became the fourth “deemed” accreditation agency under MIPPA.
Carneal notes, “Whereas most of my previous accreditation work has been geared to payers, health plans and medical management organizations, RadSite has provided me an opportunity to focus more on provider benchmarking. One of the more dynamic requirements in the MAP standards is a technical component that scores the actual image quality and physics associated with several case studies for each advanced diagnostic imaging system undergoing review. As we move forward, focusing on real-time outcome measures will be a priority to promote the best clinical and financial outcomes.”
In addition to his work with RadSite, Carneal is working on a number of other projects impacting healthcare policy:
- He serves as senior policy advisor to The Kennedy Forum, where he is working on a number of initiative to promote the integration of behavioral healthcare into mainstream medicine (see www.thekennedyforum.org).
- Carneal is leading a number of consumer-driven efforts to improve how insurance appeals are handled. He recently served as co-author of several regulatory and trend reports assessing how the payer-based medical management system is evolving, including utilization management and external review programs (see www.regquest.org).
- He also serves as co-chair of AAPAN’s Provider Affairs Committee and recently led a year-long study to assess how value-based purchasing is impacting health plans and other health organizations. For a copy of the issue brief entitled “The Need to Standardize Network Value-Based Purchasing Requirements,” click here.
Carneal is excited about RadSite’s mission and its ability to help transform imaging practices through several strategic alliances. For example, he notes, “RadSite is supported by many volunteers who comprise our Standards and Accreditation Committee, which helps us maintain transparency and accountability to multiple stakeholders.” Carneal is confident that RadSite will add more accreditation programs in the future to expand its quality-based mission.
Final Thoughts | Garry Carneal, JD
RadSite is a leader in promoting quality-based imaging standards – along with safety and business efficiency practices in health care. RadSite’s MIPPA Accreditation Program (MAP) offers insurers an excellent contract management tool to focus on outcomes, costs and a quality improvement framework that brings value to your organization’s management of imaging services. We also offer educational programs, publish issue briefs and underwrite research on a complimentary basis to raise awareness of patient safety issues and to promote best practices.