The following checklist identifies key tips to help your hospice staff prepare for interacting with auditors. Use this in conjunction with another Essential Tool for your Right Hand Drawer—' 10 Questions Every Hospice Employee Should Be Able To Answer'—to keep your staff audit ready.

(This list is also available in a PDF / print friendly version for your convenience.)

✔ ACTION EXPLANATION
Adopt an appropriate
mindset
  • It is an investigation, not a conversation.
  • The communication strategies on this checklist are not intuitive—be prepared to fight human nature.
Establish credibility
and create a favorable
impression of the
organization.
  • Be cordial, polite, and businesslike.
  • Remember, you know your business better than anyone else.
Document interactions
with auditors.
  • Identify a notetaker who will be present for interviews.
  • Record all questions/answers/statements.
  • Note action items required of hospice or promised by auditors.
Make sure you
understand the question.
  • Listen to the questions fully.
  • Don't assume you know what they are asking.
  • If you do not understand a question, ask for clarification—"question the questioner."
Satisfy the questioner
  • Provide accurate information that is responsive to the question.
Provide a
focused response
  • Do not volunteer information that is not responsive.
  • Resist the temptation to "fill the silence" with information that was not reequested.
  • Scope of answer should match scope of question—broad/broad; narrow/narrow
Avoid being
misinterpreted.
  • If questions cannot accurately be answered in one word, provide a sufficient explanation.
    – A response of "Yes, however..." can be effective in turning a negative into a positive.
Don't go "out on a limb."
  • Understand the limits of your knowledge.
    – "I don't know" is an appropriate response if it is accurate.
  • Do not guess at an answer, even if you would preface the response with "This is just a guess, but..." Instead, the appropriate answer is likely "I don't know."
  • Be cautious about offering opinions.
    – Consider whether you are qualified to provide an opinion, especially about medical issues.
    – Consider whether you have enough information to provide an informed opinion.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.