About QMCG - Consultants

Catherine M. Ballard Consultant and Principal Partner, Bricker & Eckler LLP

Areas of Practice

Health care facilities' day-to-day operations and dealings with administrative agencies, private accrediting agencies and court proceedings; medical staff credentialing; quality assessment/improvement and peer review; physician recruitment and contract negotiations; development of compliance programs; allied health professional credentialing and policies; developing and implementing managed care systems; and general patient care issues. 

Representative Experience

• Partner in Health Care Department of the law firm of Bricker & Eckler which serves as counsel to health care entities throughout the country as well as many healthcare trade associations. The firm represents a wide variety of health care entities including hospitals and their medical staffs, the long term care industry, home health agencies, provider-sponsored health insurance programs, health maintenance organizations, preferred provider organizations, physician hospital organizations, as well as individual healthcare professionals and group practices.
• Assist medical staffs and medical staff leaders with developing systems for quality and efficient health care delivery for integrated delivery systems and managed care. 
• Design and implement mergers of medical staffs as a result of mergers and acquisitions involving healthcare institutions. 
• Policy, procedure and program design and implementation in areas of credentialing, peer review, quality assessment, and risk management systems.
• Ongoing regulatory compliance work with federal and state agencies including the Ohio Department of Health; the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services at the state and federal level; the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OHSA) and agencies enforcing OHSA; the Drug Enforcement Agency; and state professional licensing boards. 
• Accreditation survey preparation and advisor during survey process for numerous clients.
• Law Clerk to the Honorable John D. Holschuh, Federal District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, 1985 87.
• Adjunct assistant professor in legal writing, The Ohio State University College of Law.

Education

B.A., University of Louisville 1975
J.D., summa cum laude, The Ohio State University College of Law, 1985

Representative Sample of Recent Speeches, Presentations, Publications

• "The Need for a Different Standard and Analysis in Equal Employment Opportunity Cases Arising in the Prison Setting", Ohio State Law Journal, Vol. 45, No. 3, 1984
• "Rise in Censured Doctors Challenging Peer Review," Medical Malpractice Law and Strategy, Vol. X, Number 10, August 1993
• Partnership & Privileges with Advanced Practice Nurses, Ohio Hospital Association, May 2004
• What's Been Happening in Ohio Courts and the Ohio Legislature & How Does this Affect Your Credentialing Process?, The Ohio Association of Medical Staff Services, April 2004
• Credentialing & Peer Review, 20th Annual Health Care Institute, Cleveland Bar Association, April 2004
• Upfront Credentialing: Policies & Practices, Ohio Hospital Association, April 2004
• Emergency Medical Treatment & Active Labor Act: A Federal Restoration Project, The Ohio Association for Health Care Quality, April 2004
• Hospital Meetings and the Law, Ohio Hospital Association, October 2003
• Medical Staff Issues of Concern, Fall Conference, The Society of Ohio Health Care Attorneys, September 2003
• New Dimensions for Hospital Medical Staff, Ohio Hospital Association, August 2003
• Applicability of Discrimination Status to Medical Staff Relationships, Ohio Hospital Association, June 2003

Contact Catherine at: cballard@bricker.com or cballard@qmcg.com