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The Latest in Healthcare News
This is the "latest" news from premier resources available for practice managers and physicians.
Rating recommendations for consumers about patient safety: sense, common sense, or nonsense?
Weingart SN, Morway L, Brouillard D, et al. Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf.
Patients are increasingly being encouraged to be proactive in ensuring their own safety, and many organizations recommend specific actions that patients should take, such as maintaining a current list of medications or asking providers to wash their hands. However, prior research has shown that many patients are not comfortable assuming an active role in their own safety.
Impressed upon Office Max
How much is your office spending annually on printing? Hmmm, uncomfortable silence? Don't worry, 90% of businesses in the US are looking down at their shoes right now too hoping they won't be called on to give the answer. And yet, when 1% of corporate revenues are spent on printing; shouldn't you be more concerned?
Staying up to date helps DCs overcome coding confusion
American Chiropractic Association, By Caitlin Lukacs
Coding for insurance reimbursement can be a confusing process. With new codes created and old codes revised on a yearly basis, it’s easy to miss the changes. Staying up to date on coding changes is the best way to take the uncertainty out of the process, say coding authorities.
Here's an article to re-print for your patients:
Finding a way to ask doctors tough questions
AHRQ, Landro L. of the Wall Street Journal
This article encourages patients to be assertive about their care and provides tips on effectively raising concerns.
Common-Sense Tax Strategies
Small business owners can use these basic strategies year-round to make tax season less of a hassle.
American Chiropractic Assocition, By Caitlin Lukacs
With April right around the corner, many people are already stressing over tax time and whether they will owe the government more than expected. According to tax experts, however, there are things you can do throughout the year to keep your accounting manageable. Just staying up-to-date and organized each month can help you feel more in control during tax season.
Diagnostic difficulty and error in primary care—a systematic review
AHRQ, Kostopoulou O, Delaney BC, Munro CW
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This systematic review of 21 published studies found that missed diagnoses in primary care could often be attributed to atypical or nonspecific presentations. This is in contrast to a study of closed malpractice claims, in which system problems contributed to a majority of outpatient missed or delayed diagnoses. |
Inpatient Computerized Provider Order Entry: Findings from the AHRQ Health IT Portfolio
AHRQ, Dixon BE, Zafar A, for AHRQ National Resource Center for Health IT
This report summarizes findings from interviews with AHRQ-funded grantees who have implemented computerized provider order entry systems.
Washington Update; Relationships between MDs and Pharma Scrutinized
Medical Practuice Trend Podcast, by Peter Polack
- The Federal Physician Payment Sunshine Act
- Feds and States cracking down on improper relationships between physicians and drug companies
- What medical practices should be aware of
- Can accepting a pen from a rep get you in legal hot water?
EMR Simulation & Evaluating Staff Training
Medical Practice Trend Podcast, by Peter Polack
- The importance of running an EMR simulation
- Evaluating the effectiveness of your staff training
Do Your Employees Make These 6 Computer Security Mistakes?
Medical Practice Trend, BY Peter Polack
Now that medical practices are joining the rest of the computerized world, they are having to deal such issues as office network security policies. As in most companies with a computer network, the weakest link is usually an employee who either inadvertently, or wittingly, commits one of these mistakes.
Do You Treat Your Patients Like Customers?
Medical Practice Trend, By Peter Polack
A consultant once asked me “What is the purpose of your business?” Have you ever asked yourself this question? Pause a second before you actually answer. My response to her question was, “Keeping customers satisfied.” And I think that this would apply to you as well – regardless of your specialty.
This Web site provides information about drug safety alerts and allows consumers to help report and prevent medication errors.
Managing Employees in the Medical Practice
An Article from HNA
A significant portion of the office manager or doctor’s day is dedicated to the issues of human resources within the practice. By effectively and efficiently managing these issues and setting policies, much of this time consuming subject matter can be notably controlled.
Medicare Physician Fee Schedule 2009
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
Physicians Who Use EHRs Pay Fewer Malpractice Claims
New Research Provides First Evidence
American Academy of Family Physicians, By Sheri Porter
Physicians who say they can't afford to purchase an electronic health record, or EHR, system may want to evaluate new research that suggests physician practices that use EHRs have fewer paid malpractice claims.
Primary Care Rocked by Rough Seas
American College of Physician Executives, By Maureen Glabman
Take a look at the trends and troubles facing primary care and learn what some experts are predicting will happen over the next decade.
How Your Medical Practice Can Weather an Economic Recession
Doctors-Management, By Valora Gurganious
The conventional wisdom in our society is that healthcare is “recession-proof.” Despite that perception, medical practices are businesses and are as susceptible to economic cycles as other small businesses. The doctor/owner must prepare to weather an economic storm that will lead to declining practice revenues, growing accounts receivable and tighter cash flows within the practice. How does the doctor prepare to ride out this storm?
Tips for Medicare Provider Enrollment
Doctors-Management, By Shannon Smith
Provider enrollment is one of the most exasperating trials of a physician or non-physician provider’s career. In our emerging paperless society, credentialing is a paper-labored process. Not only are the
applications and contracts long and tedious, but the U.S. Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) also requires many forms of authenticating paperwork.
National Patient Safety Goals Compliance Data
NPSG Trends by accreditation/certification program 2008 (Second Quarter)
Joint Commission Alert: Prevent technology-related health care errors
Technology is often touted as the “cure” for health care, but a new Joint Commission Sentinel Event Alert warns that implementation of technology and related devices is not a guarantee for success, and may actually jeopardize the quality and safety of patient care. The Joint Commission’s Alert urges greater attention to understanding when a technology may (or may not) be applicable, choosing the right technology, understanding the impact technology can have on the quality and safety of patient care, and attempting to quickly fix technology when it becomes counterproductive.
Medical Group Management Association
Pathways for Patient Safety are a series of Web tools you can use to increase awareness, knowledge and implementation of best practices for reducing the risk of patient harm in physician practices.
Physicians Money Digest, By Michael Sheehan
The bear market has offered peddlers of variable annuities an ideal environment to sell their products. Over the past several months, who wouldn’t have wanted an investment that guarantees that you can’t lose?
Policies and Procedures Essential for Increasing Collections
Physicians Money Digest
In today’s tough economy, physicians are facing an increasing challenge. Self-pay, or that portion of the healthcare dollar that is a patient’s responsibility, is becoming a larger and larger ...
Health IT Part of Stimulus Bill Passing Through Congress
MDGN , Julie Ernst
As President Obama's economic stimulus plan travels through Congress, the allocated $20 billion for health IT has remained an intact part of the ...
Where Do We Go from Here? A Health 2.0 Progress Report
MDGN Podcast
Healthcare consumers may be the driving force behind Health 2.0, but are they really in control? And who knows what the final destination will be?
Test-result services still leave room for liability
Medical Economics, By
Suppose a company that merges telephone and web-based voicemail offers you a service that seems to make perfect sense: You read the patient's test results into a voicemail box that only you and the patient can access. There is a record of the results, including an archive of all voice files, for your own defense if things ever take a wrong turn.
More office-based docs using EHRs, survey says
Medical Economics, By: Morgan Lewis Jr.
Almost 40 percent of office-based physicians are at least dipping their toes in the electronic health record waters, according to a government survey.
From April through August 2008, the National Center for Health Statistics conducted a mail survey of 2,000 office-based physicians, with a response rate of 62 percent.
Are self-service patient kiosks right for your practice?
Medical Economics, By: Ron Rajecki
Self-service kiosks, a relatively new technology, are beginning to find their place in practices across the country.
The idea behind check-in kiosks is not only to increase the accuracy of patient records, but also to improve patient and staff satisfaction.
The kiosks and ongoing fee for real-time updating of insurance information may represent only a modest investment for most practices.
Think twice before saying "I'm sorry" to a patient
Medical Economics, By: Steven I. Kern, JD
While it may be the morally correct course of action, apologizing for a medical error could lead to serious legal and economic ramifications.
Thirty-five states have enacted apology laws that range from exempting expressions of sympathy and empathy to exempting admissions of fault.
Physicians who commit an error should devise a strategy to communicate their regret—if both their attorney and carrier agree.
Managing Tech-Driven Staff Changes
EMRs can reduce overhead costs, but preparing your employees is crucial.
Physicians Practice, By Robert Anthony
Unless you’ve been so busy with patients that you haven’t had time to turn on a television, you know the economy is bad. Depending on who you listen to, this is either the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression or it’s a “market correction” that was inevitable. One thing everyone seems to agree on is that hard times are here to stay — at least for awhile.
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