Medical Office Manager

Managing patients

3 legal protections to include in your patient debt collection agency services contract

Outsourcing can be an effective way to overcome patient collection challenges. But it can also backfire if the collection agency you contract with uses illegal, unethical or insensitive collection tactics. One of the keys to managing these risks is to include proper legal protections in your services contract. This article covers the three legal protections you should include … [Read more...] about 3 legal protections to include in your patient debt collection agency services contract

A four-day week improves quality of life as well as revenues for Florida office

Four days on with Fridays "sort of " off is terrific, says the practice manager of a five-physician, 28-staff medical office in Florida. Quality of life is improved with that extra day every week, she says. And the added advantage is that revenues are above and beyond what they were previously. The practice manager proposed the four-day schedule several years ago when gas was … [Read more...] about A four-day week improves quality of life as well as revenues for Florida office

Medication errors associated with health information technology

Use of health information technology (HIT), such as computerized prescriber order entry systems and pharmacy information systems, can help prevent patient safety problems; however, if designed or implemented poorly, HIT can have significant adverse consequences for patient safety. HIT and medication-error events Between January 1 and June 30, 2016, Pennsylvania healthcare … [Read more...] about Medication errors associated with health information technology

Finding and keeping nurses

By Gayle Norton bio The shortage of qualified nurses in many parts of the country poses hiring issues, especially for medical practices outside of metropolitan areas or those competing for talent with hospitals and/or other institutions such as assisted living facilities. In addition to an increasingly shallow pool of candidates, there is also a growing nursing skills … [Read more...] about Finding and keeping nurses

Health IT safety collaborative releases new safe practices for patient identification

Improving the accuracy of patient identification remains a challenge across all healthcare settings. In fact, the ECRI Institute recently completed its Deep Dive analysis of over 7,600 safety events related to patient identification and found that misidentifications occur during every aspect of care from registration to discharge and beyond. These errors impact patient care, … [Read more...] about Health IT safety collaborative releases new safe practices for patient identification

Machine learning and healthcare: Improving outcomes through predictive analytics

Machine learning is a part of everyday life for most Americans, from navigation apps to Amazon's omniscient purchase recommendations. But in healthcare, the use of machine learning has so far been limited to niche science projects in large and academic health systems—those able to afford the highly skilled data scientists and dedicated teams required to turn their data into … [Read more...] about Machine learning and healthcare: Improving outcomes through predictive analytics

How to reduce patient stress and pain during vaccination

A study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics examined the reasons for vaccine delays and found that three-quarters of surveyed doctors said parents postponed shots over concerns about their children's discomfort.   For these parents and children, help may be on the way. Virtually calm A recent pilot study done by Sansum Clinic doctors showed that patients who … [Read more...] about How to reduce patient stress and pain during vaccination

Putting patients over profits: Who do consumers see as champions of the healthcare industry?

Harris Poll recently surveyed more than 1,000 U.S. adults ages 18+ to gauge consumers' attitudes toward the healthcare industry. The results are somewhat disheartening. "We are in the midst of a healthcare maelstrom," said Wendy Salomon, vice president of reputation management and public affairs at Nielsen. "Consumers see no safe port, no place where their interests are truly … [Read more...] about Putting patients over profits: Who do consumers see as champions of the healthcare industry?

Notice from CMS: Attest to 2016 Program Requirements by February 28

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Registration and Attestation System is now open. Providers participating in the Medicare EHR Incentive Program must attest to the 2016 program requirements by February 28, 2017 at 11:59 p.m. ET in order to avoid a 2018 payment adjustment. The EHR reporting period was any continuous 90 days between January 1 and December 31, … [Read more...] about Notice from CMS: Attest to 2016 Program Requirements by February 28