La. Admin. Code tit. 48 § I-7831

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 11, November 20, 2024

Section I-7831 - Medical Director

A. Each clinic shall be under the direction of a medical director who shall be a physician who:

1. possesses a current, unrestricted license from the board to practice medicine in Louisiana;

2. during the course of his practice, has not been denied the privilege of prescribing, dispensing, administering, supplying, or selling any controlled dangerous substance; and

3. during the course of his practice has not had any board action taken against his medical license as a result of dependency on drugs or alcohol.

B. The medical director shall be a physician certified in the subspecialty of pain management by a member board of the American Boards of Medical Specialties, except for the following exemption.

1. A licensed pain management clinic which has been verified by the department as being in operation on or before June 15, 2005, is required to have a medical director, but is exempt from having a medical director who is certified in the subspecialty of pain management by a member board of the American Boards of Medical Specialties.

C. Responsibilities. The medical director is responsible for the day-to-day clinical operation and shall be on-site, at a minimum, 50 percent of the time during the operational hours of the clinic. When the medical director is not on-site during the hours of operation, then the medical director shall be available by telecommunications and shall be able to be on-site within 30 minutes.

1. The medical director shall oversee all medical services provided at the clinic.

2. The medical director shall ensure that all qualified personnel perform the treatments or procedures for which each is assigned. The clinic shall retain documentation of staff proficiency and training.

3. The medical director, or his designee, is responsible for ensuring a medical referral is made to an addiction facility, when it has been determined that a patient has been diverting drugs or participating in the illegal use of drugs.

4. The medical director is responsible for ensuring a urine drug screen of each patient is obtained as part of the initial medical evaluation and intermittently, no less than quarterly, during the course of treatment for chronic pain.

5. The medical director shall ensure that patients are informed of after-hours contact and treatment procedures.

6. The medical director is responsible for applying to access and query the Louisiana Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP).

a. The PMP is to be utilized by the medical director and the pain specialist as part of the clinics quality assurance program to ensure adherence to the treatment agreement signed by the patient.

i. The treatment agreement states that the patient has been informed that he shall only obtain and receive narcotic prescriptions from the clinic where he is being treated for chronic pain.

(a). The patient shall be subject to periodic unannounced drug screens and shall not participate in diversion of any controlled dangerous substance.

b. Compliance to this agreement is to be determined, evaluated, and documented at each subsequent visit to a clinic when the patient receives a prescription for a controlled dangerous substance.

La. Admin. Code tit. 48, § I-7831

Promulgated by the Department of Health and Hospitals, Office of the Secretary, Bureau of Health Services Financing, LR 34:83 (January 2008), Amended by the Department of Health and Hospitals, Bureau of Health Services Financing, LR 412648 (12/1/2015).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 40.2198.11-13.