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Congratulations to Secure Results MRO Assistants, Marianne Fischer and Heather Kraekel, for Attending the DATIA Medical Review Officer (MRO) Assistants course in Baltimore MD on October 1, 2014. The course delivers comprehensive training on industry best practices, provides helpful hints for successful implementation, and helps MRO Assistants to achieve success. The course is designed for those who actively assist MROs and those who have regular contact with donors, employers, and program administrators. This program will help to ensure that MRO Assistant duties are performed in a professional and consistent manner, maintaining confidentiality for the donor, and ensuring security and integrity in the process. DATIA’s new training course is the only national training program for MRO Assistants, and is now the prerequisite for MRO Assistant certification through the Medical Review Officer Certification Council (MROCC).

After successful completion of DATIA’s MRO Assistant Training Course, attendees are eligible to apply for MRO Assistant Certification through the Medical Review Officer Certification Commission (MROCC). This three-year certification – awarded upon successful completion and passing of the MROCC MRO-A online examination–acknowledges competency in those practical skills the MRO Assistant applies in fulfilling his or her professional responsibilities within the workplace drug testing arena.

DATIA’s course is designed for those who actively assist MROs in the review and reporting of drug test results, and those who have regular contact with donors, employers, and program administrators. This is not a medical, science, or technology course—rather it teaches practical methodology for meeting industry standards, and provides helpful hints and standards for situations regularly faced by MRO assistants. Attendees need not have previous knowledge of the collection and drug testing processes before enrolling in the course.

The objective of Excelling as an MRO Assistant is to provide instruction and resource material that enables the MRO assistant to: fully understand the role of the MRO and the MRO assistant in the drug testing process; define issues that arise during the medical review process and the best courses of action to tackle these issues; provide services meeting standards of professionalism, accountability, and ethical behavior; and implement practical application of industry standards and procedures.

Course Overview

• The historical and current role of the MRO
• The value and importance of the MRO assistant
• About drug testing labs and their role
• Regulatory requirements of the MRO
• The importance of individual company policies, state laws, modal requirements, and HIPAA regulations
• Standards of professionalism, accuracy, consistency, confidentiality, accountability, and ethical behavior
• Demands on the MRO assistant for integrity, customer service, professional demeanor, communication and technology skills, detail orientation, and independent work
• Methodology throughout the entire review process, including contact with labs and collection sites, matching chains, and MRO-donor interviews
• About contact with the donor, the donor’s family and workplace, designated employer representatives (DER), and consortia/third party administrator (C/TPA) personnel
• The importance of accuracy in reporting results, recordkeeping, and documentation
• Issues surrounding split specimen testing, including payment, donor and employer communications, reporting, and documentation
• What an assistant CAN and CANNOT do
• Best ways to communicate with a donor including angry, non-English speaking, and rude or harassing donors
• How to deal with someone who wants you to “bend the rules”
• How to deal with uncooperative collection sites
• Tips for dealing with attorneys, workers compensation companies, and subpoenas for records