If You Have Complaints about Wisconsin Health Care

Information about Division of Quality Assurance (DQA)

DQA Web Pages

DQA Facility Directories

DQA Provider Training

DQA Numbered Memos

DHFS Forms

WI Nurse Aide Training and Registry Info

Caregiver Program/ Background Checks

WI Adult Programs Caregiver Misconduct Registry

WI Medicaid Provider Information

Wisconsin Division of Quality Assurance

The Division of Quality Assurance (DQA), is responsible for assuring the safety, welfare and health of persons using health and community care provider services in Wisconsin.

• Division of Quality Assurance
  P.O. Box 2969
  Madison, WI 53701-2969
  Phone: (608) 266-8481
  Fax: (608) 267-0352

• Please review List of providers regulated by DQA for specific contact information regarding individual provider types

DQA Web Pages - information and navigation assistance

DQA Organization Chart (PDF, 57 KB)

Complete the DQA Post Survey Questionnaire Online

Effective April 21, 2008, any person (resident, employee, ombudsman, relative, friend, other) may file a complaint regarding a facility staff person, a regulated healthcare facility, a clinical lab or other DQA related issue via a online intake complaint process.

DQA contains the following bureaus and office:

• Administrator's Office

• Bureau of Nursing Home Resident Care

• Bureau of Assisted Living

• Bureau of Health Services

• Bureau of Technology, Licensing & Education

• Office of Caregiver Quality

The Administrator's Office is responsible for the bureau's mission, organizational goals, strategic planning, overall policy direction, and provision of leadership and vision to DQA programs.

It also handles the Division's personnel, fiscal, quality assurance, reengineering and budget functions.

The Bureau of Nursing Home Resident Care (BNHRC) is responsible for conducting unannounced health care surveys of nursing homes and facilities serving persons with developmental disabilities (FDDs - also known as intermediate care facilities for the mentally retarded, ICFs/MR).

In addition, BNHRC reviews facility construction plans, conducts complaint investigations, and makes care level determinations for persons receiving medical assistance in the community or in nursing homes and FDDs. 

• BNHRC Regional Office Map and Contacts

The Bureau of Assisted Living (BAL) is responsible for licensing and surveying the following provider types:

• community based residential facilities (CBRFs)

• adult family homes - 3 or 4 beds

• adult day care programs and 

• residential care apartment complexes (RCACs).

BAL Regional Office Map and Contacts

The Bureau of Health Services (BHS) consists of three sections: 

• The Acute Care Compliance Section (ACCS) conducts announced and unannounced health care surveys of:

  • hospitals

  • home health agencies

  • hospices

  • ambulatory surgical centers

  • end stage renal dialysis centers

  • outpatient rehabilitation facilities (includes comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation facilities, CORFs)

  • portable X-ray

  • rural health clinics

  ACCS also conducts plan review approvals and construction inspections of all non-long-term health care provider capital construction projects.

• The Behavioral Health Certification Section (BHCS) certifies alcohol and other drug abuse and mental health treatment programs

• The Clinical Lab Section (CLIA) in BHS is responsible for the survey and certification of Wisconsin clinical laboratories testing human specimens for health assessment purposes, as well as those performing alcohol testing.

• The Office of Caregiver Quality (OCQ) has primary responsibility for:
  • Administration of the Caregiver Program that requires background checks of caregivers, facility owners, board members and nonclient residents in Department-regulated facilities.
  • Receiving, screening and investigating allegations of caregiver misconduct and maintaining the Wisconsin Caregiver Misconduct Registry.
  • Administration of the federal and state requirements for nurse aide training, the competency evaluation program and the federal nurse aide registry. 
  • Oversight of the Federal Background Check Pilot Program which establishes a fingerprint-based background check process and provides abuse-prevention training in 4 pilot counties.

The Bureau of Technology, Licensing & Education (BTLE):

• determines if health care providers regulated by DQA meet state licensure and federal certification standards

• recommends and implements state enforcement actions, when appropriate

• coordinates with other agencies on referrals

• works with the Department's Office of Legal Counsel on cases in litigation

• serves as the main state liaison to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for federal certification, enforcement and audit activities

• interprets codes and policies

• conducts industry and new DQA employee training

• provides specialized consultation

• develops and carries out quality improvement and assurance efforts

Finally, BTLE maintains personal computer and mainframe support for DQA and its data systems, including OASIS and MDS, as well as assisting providers in using these systems.

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Last Updated: April 25, 2008