Allison Dewan

Recent Posts

Could EMRs Save Health Care? Is a Medical Scribe the Answer?

Posted by Allison Dewan on Wed, Dec 10, 2014 @ 11:13 AM

A recent article in the Houston Business Journal, titled, "How EMRs will save health care" looks at some of the benefits of EMRs and how the technology is aiding many in the healthcare industry. 

 One physician group, the Southeast Texas Medical Associates LLP, was featured in the article as an example of a physican-owned health care organization that finds EMRs to be beneficial. James Holly, CEO of the physician group (SETMA) said that EMRs "play a big role in making the process more efficient for patients." His group uses EMRs to send data between specialists and primary care physicians within the network, according to the article. 

Holly went on to discuss just how important he finds EMRs to be, and as the head of a physician group, how he thinks EMRs are changing health care as we know it. He says that he thinks EMRs can only improve in the future, saying " I think in 10 more years, we're going to be in a much more robust position than we are now...I think the (health care information exchange) will be mature, and most practices, if not all, will be integrated through the HIE."

While Holly is forward-thinking and seems to embrace the technology, that is not the case with mnay physicians. Also, Holly is optimistic towards the HIE, which in theory is a groundbreaking idea. But, in reality, many physicians and healthcare workers are skeptical of the HIE, and worry that a lack of communication many occur between different health care systems and different physicians and hospitals. Another question that many physicians and healthcare workers alike are raising is the question of errors in reporting when using EMRs.

As for the fear of, and the room for errors when using EMRs, there are many options to prevent errors. Medical scribes can assist in this space and can allow for more accuracy and less room for error when using EMRs. Scribes work side-by-side with the physicians and serve as personal assistants and data entry specialists when it comes to the EMRs. This allows physicians more time for patient care, and this also prevents physician data entry errors on EMRs. 

It seems that EMRs are here to stay, especially with Meaningful Use requirements coming up and the need for electronic documentation of patient records. Scribes can help doctors, especially since there is such a high learning curve for these clinicians. Doctors prefer to care for their patients, and they want to provide quality care; physicians do not want to type into EMRs all day long. EMRs and the HIE still have some kinks to work out, but as with any new technology and concept, it takes time to enact and adapt to change. Healthcare workers, be it physicians, physician assistants, nurses or nurse practitioners need to embrace change in order to increase efficency, and many can do this using a medical scribe.

Tags: healthcare, EMRs, Improve Efficiency, Scribe, EMR, EHR, Medical Scribes

Efficiency: Revenue Cycle Management, ICD-10, and Financial Position

Posted by Allison Dewan on Tue, Dec 02, 2014 @ 11:58 AM

Recent reports show that ICD-10 may not break the bank as badly as the AMA once predicted, but the new code set still presents a number of challenges to financially vulnerable healthcare organizations. 

ICD-10 has pushed hospitals and physician providers to evaluate their core competencies while preparing for infrastructure upgrades and training needs.

This, however, has led to revenue cycle issues and has put many providers in a bind. So, in order to deal with this issue, providers have been turning to specialized partners for clinical documentation improvement (CDI), revenue cycle management (RCM), and expert coding advice.  According to EHR Intelligence,"a new Black Book estimate projects that the RCM outsourcing market will grow from $7.7 billion to $9.9 billion by the middle of 2016." In looking at this data, the big question is: will these efforts help providers overcome the financial impacts of the ICD-10 switch, and how much will they help?

EHR Intelligence also found "that twenty percent of hospitals that have recently embraced RCM outsourcing are still critically afraid that they are facing closure or bankruptcy within the next four years if their RCM technology, in-house or outsourced, isn’t cutting edge." Needless to say, ICD-10 is a big change, and it can raise concern over finances and organizational management procedures.

We don't know if RCM outsourcing is the answer, or the sole solution to the problem. But, working as an organization to anticipate any financial impact of ICD-10 would be a good precautionary measure. Also, medical scribe services may also benefit the financial health of your organization. A scribe program and RCM outsourcing could be the answer. This complex issue is unique in nature and each organization will be impacted differently. Stay up to date on ICD-10 and how to prepare. We will feature more posts on ICD-10...stay tuned! 

Tags: healthcare, ICD10, healthIT, Scribe, revenue cycle

The Importance of ICD-10 in Big Data's Future

Posted by Allison Dewan on Thu, Nov 20, 2014 @ 11:40 AM

ICD-10 and Big Data

Some doctors might find ICD-10 to include too many codes, but these codes and the new advances of ICD-10 are necessary for big data success in the medical field.

According to resident physician William Rusnak as quoted in a FierceHealth IT article, "doctors will never detect the one-in-a-million disease when it matters". 

Change isn't always easy, but it is here to stay. ICD-10 will be beneficial to doctors and in the big picture the shift to ICD-10 can allow for more efficient and precise coding.

The resident physician quoted in the article, Rusnak, went on to explain the big data benefits of ICD-10, emphasizing that with advanced computing power that can accurately record human behavior, ICD-10 can aid in crucial healthcare situations and lead to further efficiency. 

Rusnak states that there needs to be a code for even the rarest condition that a patient may have, and that a code should represent specific details of any procedures performed as well.

Following Rusnak's advice that codes need to represent all conditions and procedures and even the variations of both, doctors can then collect big data in a precise manner. 

This, in turn, will lead to proper and more accurate decisionmaking when reporting on health. 

ICD-10 will help with big data because the coding will lead to clear-cut reporting on health events and outcomes. 

Tags: wellness, ICD10, healthIT, patient satisfaction, EHR

Doctors are Burning Out: But why?

Posted by Allison Dewan on Thu, Nov 13, 2014 @ 06:08 PM

America's doctors are burned out. Well, America's healthcare workers are burned out as a whole. 

Just how burned out are American healthcare workers? According to an article by Kimberly Palm on LinkedIn, 50% or more of doctors, nurses, and other health care workers are burned out; in stating this, Palm is referring to the latest research. 

Palm cites reasons such as builtup stress that lingers from med school into residency into practices. She notes that often times "doctors are not prepared to take on the stresses and responsibilities of running a business". 

We get it. Palm is right when she says that doctor burnout can be attributed to the difficulties of running a business, something doctors learn nothing about during med school. 

Another stressor that Palm doesn't mention: data entry into EMRs. 

Add EMRs to the long list of reasons for doctor burnout. But, there is a solution and an easy fix to help keep our gifted doctors practicing and doing what they love. 

Scribes can be the solution. Medical scribes can take away the additional stress that EMRs may cause for doctors today. 

Tags: healthcare, EMRs, Scribe

Tips for Transitioning to ICD-10

Posted by Allison Dewan on Mon, Nov 10, 2014 @ 11:14 AM

October 1, 2015 is a big date. Things will change. Be prepared!

AthenaHealth recently hosted a webinar on transitioning to ICD-10. According to AthenaHealth, "the new code set, ICD-10, increases the number of reporting codes from about 13,600 to more than 69,000"; so as you can see, there are some complexities to changing from ICD-9 to ICD-10. 

As you can see in the increase in number of reporting codes, there will be an increase in reporting detail with ICD-10. This transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10 could be very costly for your organization, but there are some preventative measures you can take as a precautionary step.

As a precaution, you and your organization need to converse with your vendor and keep up with the vendor as you transition to ICD-10.

In order to avoid unnecessary costs and headaches, you should ask your vendor some important questions. Here are some helpful questions you should ask your vendor to allow for a smoother transition to ICD-10:

  1. What is covered by contracts?
  2. What are plans and timelines?
  3. How will systems work with both ICD-9 and ICD-10?
  4. What does implementation process entail?
  5. What are costs, if any, for training and support in shift to ICD-10?

Info gathered at AthenaHealth webinar. For more info on AthenaHealth visit their website http://www.athenahealth.com/

Tags: healthcare, ICD10, EMRs, EMR

Wellness & Work: They Matter

Posted by Allison Dewan on Tue, Nov 04, 2014 @ 03:42 PM

Patient engagement is a hot topic today. But, while patient engagement is still important, it might not be the only hot topic when it comes to the term "engagement". 

Employee engagement is another "engagement" that today's businesspeople need to give some attention. The health and lifestyle of employees need to be key to management if staff. With today's everchanging health landscape and the risks of epidemic and antimicrobial resistance on the rise, prevention is vital when it comes to employee health. 

According to a Fierce Healthcare special report, leaders in the health care space can achieve goals of engaging employees for wellness by laying out employee wellness programs.

This is very important in the healthcare industry, because a recent study shows that healthcare professionals are no healthier than their patients.

Tags: healthcare, wellness, employee engagement

Doctors Discuss EHR and Ups and Downs

Posted by Allison Dewan on Thu, Oct 30, 2014 @ 03:44 PM

As you all know, EHR is present in modern health care, and it is here to stay.

That being said, it is not being welcomed by all, and many are criticizing EHR. Some doctors are less than thrilled with EHR capability and ease of use. But, while there is criticism, like with any new tool introduced into an industry, EHR is useful and changing modern health care for the better. Yes, EHR can be overwhelming and too much to handle at times for the physicians, but that is why medical scribes exist. Hiring scribes can help.

One doctor in particular discussed his thoughts on EHR in a recent article, and his comments were interesting and important, because they help us understand the physician perspective.

Dr. Danny Newman discussed EHR with Georgia Health News. He realizes that electronic health records are here to stay, and he has seen firsthand some of the benefits of replacing paper charts with electronic ones. He said that one advantage of EHR is electronic prescribing of medications, which he says reduces mix-ups caused by illegible or messy handwriting.

But, as mentioned above, we all know that physicians are still not thrilled with EHR, despite seeing some of the benefits associated with going electronic.

Newman highlights his frustration, saying, “They’re (EHR) supposed to be more efficient...but I think they’re less efficient”. According to the article, for Newman a patient visit now produces five pages of notes, instead of a single page in the pre-EHR days, and it takes about five minutes to fill in the EHR for one visit. Newman is pretty clear in his frustration with EHR, when he says, “It’s taking away time from my patients".

As Newman says, nowadays “Many doctors feel like they’re data entry clerks”.

But they don’t have to be, and there is a helpful solution: scribes.

Take note, physicians: don’t resist EHR and let it bog you down. You can hire a scribe. 

Tags: EMRs, Scribe, EHR

What are ACOs?

Posted by Allison Dewan on Thu, Oct 23, 2014 @ 10:02 AM

ACOs have been mentioned recently, so it is important to understand just exactly what ACOs are...and CMS lays it out for us.

ACO stands for Accountable Care Organization. According to the CMS website, here is the definition of ACOs: Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) are groups of doctors, hospitals, and other health care providers, who come together voluntarily to give coordinated high quality care to their Medicare patients.

Coordinated care is meant to make sure that patients, particularly the chronically ill, get the right care at the right time, while avoiding duplication of services and preventing medical errors.

When an ACO both delivers high-quality care and spends health care dollars more efficiently, it will share in the savings it achieves for the Medicare program.

For more info, see the CMS link where this information was gathered: ACOs link 

Tags: healthcare, patient satisfaction

Electronic Medical Records - Why Scribes Can Help

Posted by Allison Dewan on Mon, Oct 20, 2014 @ 10:04 AM

Use of electronic medical record systems is associated with considerable loss of free time per clinic day, according to a research letter published online Sept. 8 in JAMA Internal Medicine.

This does not make EMR look like a good data managment method to adopt.

But, EMRs are the way of the future, and can be very beneficial...with the help of a medical scribe. 

Doctors should treat patients; they shouldn't be typing all day and trying to use new technology. 

Clement J. McDonald, M.D., from the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., and colleagues surveyed the American College of Physicians' national sample of internists to examine the extent of EMR-associated time loss. Data were obtained from 411 respondents (mainly attending physicians).

"The loss of free time that our respondents reported was large and pervasive and could decrease access or increase costs of care," the authors write.

 


Tags: EMRs, Scribe

Doctors Go High Tech and See Results

Posted by Allison Dewan on Wed, Oct 15, 2014 @ 12:02 PM

Technology can drive physician success

Gone (well, almost) are the days of paper charting and missing patient files and unorganized patient management. Technology has changed the patient management landscape - for good.

Physicians are benefitting greatly from technology - they use cloud technology, electronic health records, and automation. These physicians are becoming leaders in accountable care organizations (ACOs) and in ICD-10 adoption, meaningful use implementation, and provider patient connectivity.

In the recent issue of Healthcare IT News, the way technology is driving physicians success is discussed:

“As more clinics across the country adopt EHRs, they are finding that the technology dovetails nicely with other systems, enabling data management for population health, establishment of patient portals, medication tracking and electronic prescribing among other things.”

(Zack Wilson of CSI Healthcare IT quoted in Healthcare IT News)

Doctors are paying attention to the technological changes and the way these changes are benefiting physicians across the country.

Jen Polello, a principal consultant with Arcadia Healthcare solutions says that these doctors are starting to pay attention to EHR and are adapting to EHR out of necessity:

“(Technology adoption) is mainly borne by necessity rather than pure desire...they realize it makes sense from a clinical and business standpoint.”