Accelerated Medical Practice Blog

Physician practices are concerned with finding EMR software that meets the needs and requirements of their particular organization. CTS Guides, a research company located in Rockville, MD offers a free Medical Software Selection Kit to help healthcare practices compare and review software options, define needs, prepare questions to ask vendors during demos, and gain more control over the software selection process. The kit provides software reviews, comparative product ratings including over 800 features, and a template...

As anyone in the coding world knows, modifiers are a critical component for accurate billing and maximum reimbursement. The notorious complexity of modifier rules creates considerable lag when it comes to the forms review and editing process. The questions below highlight key factors that must be taken into account when applying modifiers to procedures.  What does your practice management system allow or require? The first challenge for posting claims correctly to the practice management (PM) system...

I speak with clinics representing as many as 30 specialties, ranging from small practices of a few providers to practices consisting of hundreds of providers, nearly all of which have one thing in common: They are adopting new practice management systems. No Such Thing as Perfect PM System One thing is certain, no two clinics are alike. Not in workflow, billing needs, or in what they see as priorities for their organizations. In an ideal world,...

One of the most famous examples of the law of unintended consequences is Kudzu. Introduced to the United States in 1876, the plant was originally intended as erosion control. Currently spreading at a rate of 150,000 acres per year, the plant will overtake everything in its path when left unchecked. What are the unintended consequences created by your EMR implementation? Think back to charge entry employees. Usually, when keying charges into the PM system, the process is more complicated than simple data entry....

When you look at the typical project plan for an EMR implementation, the clinical components are typically the focal point: template selection and customization, physician training, clinical workflow, etc. Automating the charge capture and coding elements are usually placed at the bottom of the work list and may never be fully implemented. This gap in implementation planning often results in practices being forced to produce costly, manual workarounds as needed. This is a dangerous financial hazard...

When many EMRs were originally designed, charge capture and coding was not a major design objective. As an ancillary feature and benefit of EMRs—untested in the real world—that EMRs could replace the superbill began to appear in sales presentations. 

"Mind the gap" is a warning for passengers to take caution while crossing the gap between the train door and the railway platform. Introduced in 1969 on the London Underground, this warning also serves physician practices well as they pursue the important goal of implementing an electronic medical record (EMR). 

White Plume's code scrubbing capabilities came to the rescue for an orthopedic practice.

This is a difficult time for practice administrators as you attempt to navigate your way to the future. Many practices have made significant financial investments in existing practice management and EMR systems. Some practices are now making additional new investments in those technologies by replacing an existing EMR.