Glossary of location terms

 

Accepting new patients
A physician who is available to see new patients. Physicians who practice in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Ob/Gyn, and high volume behavioral health can be selected.

Accreditation information (see also credentialing)
Hospital accreditation verifies the authenticity and quality of services provided by a healthcare organization. Kaiser Permanente affiliated hospitals are accredited by The Joint Commission and/or the American Osteopathic Association. These accrediting organization websites provide an overview of accreditation requirements and information on the accreditation status of each hospital. The links are located under the heading “Accreditation” on the facility detail page for each hospital. Information is updated by the accrediting organization as reviews are completed.

Affiliated with Kaiser Permanente/joined Kaiser Permanente/joined Permanente Medical Group
The date a physician became part of the Permanente Medical Group, or the date a health care professional or affiliated physician became associated with Kaiser Permanente. It does not indicate the practitioner's years in the health care profession.

Amenities
Convenient additions to medical facilities that do not relate directly to care. Amenities will vary by location, but may include a café, gift shop, or business center.

Board certified practitioner
A physician who has successfully completed a residency program approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) in a specialty that is recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) or by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), and has been certified by an ABMS or AOA member board. (Source: the American Medical Association.) The board certification is validated by Kaiser Permanente's Credentialing Department. This information is updated when each practitioner's board certification is up for renewal and at time of reappointment, typically 2 to 3 years, depending on your state and the setting.

Kaiser Permanente Health Plan/Hospitals credential and recredential all physicians who are partners of, employed by, or contracted with the Permanente Medical Groups as well as other licensed independent and allied health practitioners. Our credentialing process is in compliance with all regulatory and accreditation standards, including those published by The Joint Commission, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).

To verify board certification for an individual practitioner, please visit the American Board of Medical Specialties, the American Medical Association or the American Osteopathic Association websites.

Credentialing and recredentialing (see also accreditation)
The process of assessing, verifying, and evaluating a practitioner's qualifications against defined criteria for participation. Regulatory requirements stipulate that a practitioner must be recredentialed within defined timeframes. Recredentialing is the process of reassessing, reverifying, and re-evaluating specific data elements, practitioner performance, judgment, and clinical/technical skills to validate a practitioner's eligibility for continued participation.

Department
The division where a clinical staff member practices a particular medical specialty. This information comes from the Kaiser Permanente Human Resources Department and changes when the practitioner changes departments. We display the primary or main department for all Kaiser Permanente practitioners.

Department listings
Appear below the general facility information on each facility page. They include detailed information on the services and departments available at the facility. Each department listing may include:

  • Department location within the facility
  • Department hours
  • Department phone numbers
  • Services provided by the department
  • Additional notes about the department

Department information in the online directory is updated as changes are reported by each department contact. All department information is reviewed annually in coordination with updates to printed directories.

Gender
Whether a practitioner is male or female or unspecified. This information is supplied on a one-time basis by the individual practitioner.

General information and directions
Located at the top of each facility detail page under the heading "General information and directions." The general facility information may include:

  • Facility name
  • Primary facility address
  • Additional facility addresses
  • Driving directions
  • Public transportation information
  • Facility hours
  • Facility phone numbers
  • Facility picture

General facility information in the online directory is updated as changes are reported by facilities. All information is reviewed annually in coordination with updates to printed directories.

Hospital affiliation
A practitioner is affiliated with a specific hospital if he or she is allowed to admit or care for patients at that location. This is known as "admitting or attending privileges." A practitioner's hospital affiliation is validated by Kaiser Permanente's Credentialing Department at the time the practitioner is initially appointed or reappointed.

Language
Any language a practitioner speaks in addition to English. Information on how well the practitioner speaks the language is provided by the practitioner upon hiring. This information comes from the Kaiser Permanente Medical Group Human Resources Department.

Medical center or facility
A location offering surgical treatment, specialty care, and emergency services. Depending on the care needed, patients may be admitted to a hospital or go home after treatment. This information comes from the Kaiser Permanente Human Resources Department.

Medical office locations or medical facilities
The address of the medical location where the practitioner cares for patients. A practitioner may provide care at more than one office location. This information comes from the Kaiser Permanente Human Resources Department or from our contracting provider network, and is updated when a practitioner changes location. Please note: our directory displays the main or primary medical location where Kaiser Permanente practitioners are located.

Medical or professional school
The name and location of the school where the health care professional has received education and a degree. This information is validated by Kaiser Permanente's Credentialing Department.

Medical training
The residency, internship, and other programs the practitioner has completed after graduating from medical school. This information is validated by Kaiser Permanente's Credentialing Department.

Narrow network
A narrow network is defined as a tailored, tiered or high-performance network that has 80 percent or less overlap with a health plan's broadest network offered to a member in any type of plan offered by that health plan. Kaiser Permanente does not have a narrow network with respect to its Marketplace plans.* Members enrolled in Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (KFHP) Marketplace plans have access to the same provider networks as members enrolled in all other KFHP plans.

*This excludes the Select product Marketplace plan offered in the southern Colorado service area.

Permanente Medical Group
Physicians belonging to our medical group who devote their full attention to providing quality care to Kaiser Permanente members.

Plan type
The type of Kaiser Permanente health plan you are enrolled in. Your plan type can be found at the top left of your Kaiser Permanente ID card.

Practitioner name
The name appearing on the practitioner's medical or professional license. This information comes from the Kaiser Permanente Credentialing Department or from the contracting provider network. A practitioner's name is validated at the time the license is verified with the medical or licensing board.

Primary care practitioner or physician (PCP)
A medical staff member who provides basic health care services. This may include a physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant. Members must select a personal practitioner from the following primary care departments:

  • Adult or internal medicine (specialized in adult care)
  • Family or general medicine (health care for you and your whole family)
  • Pediatric medicine (care for patients from birth through age 16 to 18, depending on the facility)

Primary care practitioner accepting new patients
A physician who provides basic or general health services, and who is available to see new patients. The ability of a practitioner to take on new patients changes occasionally. To find out if a practitioner is accepting new patients, please contact Member Services.

Professional training
The postgraduate programs the health care professional has completed. This information is validated by Kaiser Permanente's Credentialing Department.

Quality ratings
We participate in a number of independent reports rating our quality of care and service. This gives our members and the public reliable information to better understand the quality of care we deliver and compare our performance to other health plans.

Quality information is found on the location detail page for each hospital. The hospital quality information includes the following:

  • A link to a detailed explanation of quality ratings and accreditation
  • A link to the most recent quality information for the hospital

Updated information is posted when new quality or accreditation reviews are completed. The dates associated with each review are included in the quality information.

Specialist
Doctors who have completed advanced education and clinical training in a specific area of medicine (their specialty area). Examples include cardiologists, orthopedists, and surgeons.

Specialty
The specific age group (i.e., children), body system (i.e., the heart), or other area a practitioner focuses on. Our practitioners provide specialty care only when they are board certified or have the requisite education or training and are approved by the medical staff to provide care in that specialty. The practitioner's specialties are reviewed by Kaiser Permanente's Credentialing Department at the time of reappointment.