The Iowa Physician Health Program also serves as a resource for employers. If you employ physicians, it’s important that your employees are practicing their jobs safely and effectively. If you have concerns about an employee’s safety and suspect they may be struggling with a potentially impairing condition, we can help.
Referring a Physician to the IPHP
If you have a physician who is impaired at work, you can contact the Board of Medicine directly or reach out to the staff at IPHP. When an employer reports concerns to the Board of Medicine about an impaired or potentially impaired physician, that information is passed on to the IPHP. If you reach out to us directly, we will contact the physician to offer our support and encourage them to self-report. This begins the process of determining their fitness for duty and eligibility for the program.
However, if disciplinary action has been taken by a hospital against a physician, the hospital administrator or chief of medical staff is obligated to report that action to the Iowa Board of Medicine. You can review the full duty to report list at the Iowa Board of Medicine’s website. Feel free to call us today if you have concerns about a physician.
After you refer an employee to the IPHP, we will reach out and encourage them to self-report. Once we receive the self-report, the IPHP may ask the physician to stop practicing until a determination has been made about their ability to practice safely. This decision is made by the physicians on the Iowa Physician Health Committee (IPHC) or the IPHP medical director, and our program’s assistant attorney general. A physician is only asked to stop practicing if there is a risk for patient harm or harm to the physician.
After the self-report, staff will interview the physician to discuss the circumstances leading to their referral. We will then review the situation with the chair of the IPHC or the IPHP medical director to decide if an evaluation is needed. If so, staff will provide the physician with a list of providers who have expertise in evaluating physicians or other safety sensitive professionals. At the conclusion of the evaluation, recommendations will be provided to the physician and IPHP staff. From there, eligibility to participate in our program will be determined. If they are eligible, they will be offered a contract detailing the treatment recommendations, which are tailored to their particular situation.
After a contract is signed, our staff will monitor a physician’s compliance with the contract requirements. The IPHP is not able to communicate with employers, even with a signed release. However, we can provide a letter of compliance to the physician to share with those who need an update on their status in the program.
Reporting Requirements
Physicians are obligated to report any knowledge of a colleague's possible impairment to the Iowa Board of Medicine in a timely manner. Physicians who fail to do so may find themselves in the unfortunate position of being subject to disciplinary action themselves by the Board.
If you are worried about a colleague's possible impairment, you may encourage that individual to self-report, while explaining you will be forced to do so if the colleague doesn't comply. You may also contact the IPHP directly about the problem and this will satisfy your obligation for reporting the matter to the Board. IPHP staff will then contact the physician and ask them to self-report while keeping your identity confidential.
You can review the full list of a licensee's duty to report at the Iowa Board of Medicine’s website.
Physicians licensed in Iowa have an obligation to report certain occurrences to the Iowa Board of Medicine. When a participant is the subject of a reportable action, they are still obligated to report the action to the Iowa Board of Medicine, even though they are a participant in the IPHP.
You can review the full list of a licensee's duty to report at the Iowa Board of Medicine’s website.
Have Questions or Concerns?
