Commission Members

Description

The mandate of Dental Quality Assurance Commission (DQAC) is to protect the public’s health and safety and to promote the welfare of the state by regulating the competency and quality of professional health care providers under their jurisdiction. DQAC accomplishes this mandate through a variety of activities in collaboration with the Department of Health, Health Systems Quality Assurance.

Commissions duties include:

• Establishing qualifications for minimal competency to grant or deny credential of dentists, expanded function dental auxiliaries, and dental assistants.
• Regulating the competency and quality of professional health care providers under its jurisdiction by establishing, monitoring, and enforcing qualifications for credentials.
• Establishing and monitoring compliance with continuing education requirements.
• Ensuring consistent standards of practice.
• Developing continuing competency mechanisms.
• Assessing, investigating and making recommendations related to complaints against dentists, expanded function dental auxiliaries, and dental assistants which may range from a Notice of Correction to Revocation of credential.
• Serving as reviewing members on disciplinary cases and serve on disciplinary hearing panels.
• Serving as members of standing committees, when appointed.
• Developing rules, policies, and procedures that promote the delivery of quality health care to the residents of the state.

Qualifications

DQAC is made up of 12 dentists, two expanded function dental auxiliaries, and two public members. All members must be citizens of the United States and must be residents of Washington.

Dentist members of the commission must be licensed dentists in the active practice of dentistry for a period of five years before appointment. Of the twelve dentists appointed to the commission, at least four must reside east of the summit of the Cascade mountain range. Expanded function dental auxiliary members of the commission must be licensed EFDA's.

Public member representatives may not:

• Be a member of any other health care licensing board or commission;
• Have a fiduciary obligation to a facility rendering health care services;
• Have a financial interest in the rendering of health services regulated by the commission.

Commissioner Participation Expectation Guidelines

The following expectation guidelines are intended to serve as a reference for current members and for prospective appointees of DQAC:

• Attend regular DQAC meetings, scheduled for one day on Friday every six to seven weeks. DQAC establishes its annual meeting schedule in September for the following year. The typical time commitment ranges between 20-24 days per year which also includes disciplinary hearings and the Department of Health one-day Board, Commission, Committee conference. Additional time is necessary for case reviews, participation in regional examinations and other state, regional and national meetings when selected to attend.
• DQAC members may be appointed to standing committees.
  Committees will be selected during regularly scheduled business meetings.
• Prepare for all meetings by reading materials sent one to two weeks in advance of the scheduled meeting date. The packets take an average of one hour to read prior to each business meeting. In addition, between eight and 24 hours are spent reviewing complaint files prior to each meeting, depending on the number of active cases needing RCM assessment, review and recommendation.
• Participate on disciplinary panels that may meet by telephone or in person several times per year. Sometimes panels meet with short advance notice in order to respond to emergent situations to protect the public. Hearings are scheduled separately from regular meetings because of the number of cases that need to be heard.
• Assist newly appointed DQAC members in mentorship program as necessary.
• Assist DOH program staff by providing technical expertise, and other assistance as required.

Total Annual Time Commitment:

Current Meeting Schedule

Regular DQAC business meetings and panels are scheduled every six to seven weeks.

Most DQAC meetings and panels are held in Tumwater, Washington. At least one DQAC meeting per year may be held in Eastern Washington, either Spokane or Yakima.

Become a Board, Commission or Committee Member.