Month: June 2014

Incorporating a VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol phone system, into your medical practice office can be beneficial but you should understand its limitations and risks. Since VoIP differs from traditional phone services, learning about the system beforehand can help reduce the number of initial complications and frustrations that may arise. What is VoIP? A

Clinical documentation is complicated and getting more so. Some of the complexity has to do with EHRs, to which physicians are still adapting. Much of it relates to Medicare, which has a number of goals related to the medical record. Dr. Lorena Chicoye, corporate medical director of managed care at Baptist Health South Florida, discussed

When it comes to medical practice efficiency, appointment scheduling serves as one of the most essential components in managing front office workflow and revenue. If your practice chooses a high-quality medical scheduling software program, this can remove longer wait times. To help you make that decision, we’ve reviewed the top options for medical appointment scheduling

Many physicians are reluctant to engage in marketing. They maintain that their goal is to take care of patients and not concern themselves with the business side of a medical practice. It is unfortunate that they neglect to note that “profit” is not a four-letter word. A medical practice that is profitable is not just

Being selected as a presenter at a medical conference is a big honor. Being selected to present is also a big responsibility. The other conference attendees have invested a lot in this conference. In addition to paying for travel, lodging, and conference registration, they are taking time away from their practices, patients, and possibly students

Being an office administrator in a medical office can be exhausting. There are distractions causing managers and their staff to experience extreme fatigue and actually cause loss of valuable work time. Common workplace distractions include: Workers talking loudly: Whether staff members are talking on the phone, talking to each other or in an impromptu meeting

As tempting as it might be for physicians to send and receive texts from patients, it is not a good idea unless certain safeguards are in place. There even may be legal liability if texts reveal protected health information (PHI) that is confidential under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). In fact, the

With the move to electronic health records (EHR), physicians are generally aware that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) has certain IT security requirements. See HIPAA Final Security Rule, Section 164.308(a)(7). Those requirements now apply to certain subcontractors and business associates of health care providers. HIPAA requires a medical practice to have policies

Arguably, the most important aspect of a medical practice is the physician–patient relationship. It is a combination of mutual respect and trust. Physicians expect their patient’s compliance with orders for tests and medications, as well as respect for their time. Patients expect their doctor to respect their time, offer proper treatment that results in a