Clinical Staff Office

The University of Iowa Clinical Staff Office (UI CSO), established in 1996, addresses the credentialing needs of various managed care organizations, hospitals, and other health care entities.

The verification process begins with a practitioner receiving and completing an Iowa Statewide Universal Practitioner Application, which is available in both hardcopy and electronic template. The form collects critical information regarding education, training, board certification, licensure, hospital privileges, and malpractice insurance. The form also asks necessary questions related to licensure sanctions, medicare/medicaid sanctions, felony convictions, and malpractice claim history. The information collected is then entered into the UI CSO Credentialing database and primary source verified including a query to the National Practitioner Data Bank. All information is held highly confidential, according to the UI CSO's strict security policies.

The information housed in the Credentialing Database allows the UI CSO to provide preprinted forms, applications, and reports. This capacity frees the practitioner from spending valuable time completing multiple forms/applications and decreases duplicative efforts. At recredentialing, the use of a preprinted application or profile means that the practitioner need only review, update, and attest to the information originally provided on the application.

The UI CSO verifies practitioner's credentials using criteria that is compliant with the National Committee on Quality Assurance (NCQA) and The Joint Commission (TJC).

The UI CSO routinely supports the credentialing and privileging processes that take place across University of Iowa Health Care and aims to reduce duplicative efforts and improve the verification process. Contracts with other clients may be establshed on a case-by-case basis.

The University of Iowa Clinical Staff Office (CSO) is a Credentialing Verification Organization (CVO) and is compliant with National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) standards for the following credentialing elements:

• Application Processing
• Education and Training
• DEA Certification
• License to Practice
• CVO Application and Attestation Content
• Verification of Board Certification Status
• Malpractice Claims History
• Medicare/Medicaid Sanctions
• Medical Board Sanctions
• Ongoing Monitoring
• Work History

Current and in Good Standing through April 25, 2024

NCQA is dedicated to assessing and reporting on the quality of managed care plans and credentials verification organizations.

The NCQA certification process:

• evaluates a CVO's management of various aspects of its data collection and verification operation, and the process it uses to continuously improve the services it provides.
• is a voluntary review process.
• reduces duplicative oversight and inefficient gathering of information by health plans and CVOs.
• includes rigorous on-site evaluations conducted by a team of health care professionals and certified credentials specialists. A national oversight committee of physicians analyzes the survey team's finding and determines certification based on the CVO's compliance with NCQA standards.

The CSO underwent the on-site re-survey on April 18, 2022. The final report was received and the CSO is compliant with NCQA standards for verification services.

NCQA is an independent, non-profit organization that certifies credentials verification organizations and accredits managed care organizations. More information regarding NCQA can be obtained at www.ncqa.org.

Please contact Deb Strabala, at 1-319-384-9292 for any public/written reference to the CSO as a CVO and/or their NCQA status.

Hospital Privilege for the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics

Fax request with signed and dated release of information, (please include your e-mail address).

Verification Request Form

To pay by credit card, please call 1-319-384-9294.

If you need to pay by check, make $25.00 check payable to (please include your e-mail address):

University of Iowa Clinical Staff Office
Attn: Debbie Poole
3281 Ridgeway Drive, Suite 207 2000-C-48
Coralville, IA 52241

• Please note: Follow-up should be made directly with Clinical Department Head for evaluation portion of verification.
• Please note: Delineated privileges are not granted to residents and fellows in training. Fellow Associates are the only exceptions.
• Please note: The dates given by this office relate to the delineated privileges granted by the hospital, employment/appointment dates in the Colleges can differ.

Post Graduate Training completed at the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics. Please see request requirements at Graduate Medical Education.

Medical Education verification for the University of Iowa College of Medicine (or other University of Iowa degrees), can be requested online.

Employment/Work History available through The Work Number (the Clinical Staff Office is not the authority on employment data).

Medical Records Request available online.

Authorization for Release of Child Abuse Information

Sent to Department of Human Services at the address listed on the form.

Dependent Adult Abuse Registry Information

Sent to Department of Human Services at the address listed on the form.

Related Links

• Federal DEA
• Iowa Board of Medicine
• Iowa Board of Nursing
• Iowa Department of Public Health, Professional Licensure
• Iowa Pharmacy Board (State Controlled Substance Certificate) SCSC or CDS
• The Joint Commission (TJC)
• National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) 
• NPI Registry

How does practitioner get privileges at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics?

Applications must be made through a clinical department.

How can a practitioner obtain a Federal DEA?

Call 1-800-882-9539. The DEA offers applications online. If the practitioner will only be practicing at a UI Hospitals & Clinics site, the fee should be exempt for the department and the practitioner. A department or division head may sign for this exemption.

Does the practitioner need to send a hospital privilege letter or malpractice certificate?

No. UI Hospitals & Clinics practitioners do not need to supply UI Hospitals & Clinics hospital privilege letters or copies of UI Hospitals & Clinics malpractice certificates, the CSO can obtain these in-house.

What is ongoing monitoring?

In addition to the monthly downloads of the Office of Inspector General to verify the lack of Medicare/Medicaid Sanctions, the CSO also checks the Iowa and Illinois Medical Boards to verify the lack of licensure sanctions. Interim Monitoring of licensure/registration expirations is conducted according to individual contract specifications.

Can a practitioner submit an application before all the attachments are available?

Yes, after completing the entire Iowa Statewide Universal Practitioner application, signing and dating, the application may be submitted along with a photo (2-inch x 3-inch .jpg) and the Cover-Checklist indicating which attachments will follow. For example, an Iowa Medical License has not been issued yet. In the license section of the application, indicate this item is pending, on the Cover-Checklist indicate that the copy will follow, and send it as soon as it is received. By sending the application and photo before a license is issued, the CSO can begin processing to avoid delay. Please be sure to submit pending or missing required attachments as soon as possible to avoid continued delay application processing.

If a practitioner has moonlighted at a number of hospitals, should all hospitals be listed?

Yes, any and all hospital privileges should be listed on the application. The hospital privilege section of the application can be copied if additional space is needed or additional pages can be found on the appications pages can be found on the application link on this website.

If the practitioner has already completed the application for another entity do they need to submit another one?

No, if the practitioner's information has previously been submitted to the CSO, call the UI Hospitals & Clinics department or the CSO directly at 1-319-384-9294. With the information in the database, the application can be preprinted and sent to the practitioner for renewal (review, updating, and signature).

If the practitioner will be getting married in the near future, which name is used?

Please indicate the current legal name at the time of the application completion, and enter in the "Other Names" section the new married name and/or other maiden name(s) and the effective and end date for each name.

Where can I get information about Iowa Medical Licensure or the Iowa Board of Medicine?

There is information available on the Iowa Board of Medicine online or you can call 1-515-281-6641 with further questions.

What other services does the CSO provide?

The CSO sends notifications to practitioners and their respective departments concerning renewal of licenses, federal and state DEA and CPR expirations, monitors renewals and obtains necessary primary source verifications retaining copies for the practitioner files located in the CSO. Services to outside entities can be customized to fit client needs.

What is an NPI?

National Provider Identifier - the NPI is part of the Administrative Simplification Provisions of HIPAA 1996. This number should eventually replace other practitioner numbers such as the UPIN, Medicare/Medicaid, and payor specific numbers. You can search for NPI numbers online.