Billing / ICD-10 – Page 2 – HEALTHCARE BEAT

EHR Buyer Trends for 2014

Recent research reveals new trends among EHR buying. Take a look at the data on top EHR buyer trends of 2014 provided by Softwareadvice.com. #EHRtrends2014

Key findings when analyzing 385 interactions with EHR buyers reveal their primary reasons for evaluating new software, and their most desired features and applications, include:

Mobile support topped the list of desired capabilities, with 40% of the buyers requesting this feature, followed by e-prescribing (24%) and lab integration (20%)
85% of buyers overwhelmingly prefer a web-based over an on-premise system
The majority of buyers (89%) aren seeking an integrated system, that includes applications such as billing or scheduling

AzaleaHealth is certainly at the cutting edge in addressing buyers’ needs. Azalea Health enhances the workflow of your practice, giving you the power to connect the medical side with the financial side. It is a true cloud-based solution so you don’t have to worry about maintaining servers and software. We take care of it. The fully integrated solution enables physician and specialty practices to afford a sophisticated technology that meets all their practice management needs at a fraction of the complexity and cost. #azaleahealthEHR

Azalea Health’s integrated EHR and billing solution has the flexibility to accommodate multiple specialties of any size practice. The company provides Electronic Health Records (EHR), Practice Management (PM), Revenue Cycle Management Services (RCM), mhealth app, and a Patient Health Records Portal.

Recently the company announced its merger with EHR provider, simplifyMD. The merged company, with their combined skills and products, will be able to offer expanded services and product options, as well as the tools and resources to help customers with meeting their Meaningful Use and ICD-10 requirements. The company will continue to be dedicated to simplifying the life of physicians and administrators byproviding a complete solution that is easy to implement and use. #azaleahealthmerger

Implications for EHR Vendors
Mobile support topped the list of requested EHR features, with nearly 40 percent of buyers in our sample requesting support for tablets and/or smartphones. With practices increasingly integrating mobile devices into their charting workflows, mobile support will be a key determinant in EHR purchasing decisions for buyers in 2014. Products that offer mobile applications will be well positioned to win business this year.

Vendors should also highlight their products’ meaningful use-mandated elements; e-prescribing and lab integration ranked highly on the list of requested features, thanks in no small part to their inclusion in MU requirement criteria.

Additionally, integrated suites are the future of EHRs. Nearly 90 percent of buyers explicitly requested to evaluate a system that integrates EHR with other applications (such as billing and scheduling). With nearly a quarter of the buyers replacing existing EHR solutions doing so because of a lack of integration, it seems the days of the standalone EHR are numbered.

Implications for EHR Buyers

Most of the buyers in our sample wanted to implement their new EHR software within three months. However, the climbing percentage of buyers replacing existing systems due to dissatisfaction suggests buyers would be well served by dedicating as much time as needed to the evaluation process.

Researcher Commentary

“We’re seeing significant demand for mobile solutions that allow users to access the EHR on tablets, or even on smartphones while on-the-go. Mobile devices are increasingly being integrated into practices’ workflows, and buyers need solutions that facilitate the efficiency those mobile devices can offer.”

“The percentage of buyers replacing existing implementations continues to rise. With so many buyers beginning their research with rapid-fire implementation timelines, I expect that proportion to continue growing. My advice to buyers is this: don’t impose a hard deadline on your evaluation process. Find a system that truly addresses your needs before making a purchase, rather than adopting a system and attempting to make it suit your purposes once in place.”

Methodology

Software Advice regularly speaks on the phone with medical practices seeking new EHR software. For this analysis, we randomly selected 385 of our phone interactions from Q1 2014 to analyze. Buyers were asked about their reasons for evaluating systems, the most critical features required and deployment preferences, among other criteria.

Emily King
Media Relations

Software Advice

Medical Document Services of Kansas, LLC (MDS) is a Wichita, Kansas healthcare document service specializing in Medical Billing and RCM, Medical Transcription, and AzaleaHealth EHR. We provide efficient, accurate, affordable quality services for hospitals, clinics, and facilities of all sizes. Call 866-777-7264 today, or visit our website for more information. We have education programs in Medical Scribe Specialists and Healthcare Documentation Specialists. #medicaltranscription #azaleahealthEHR #revenuecyclemanagement

ICD-10 is About Specificity and Documentation

MDS understands that document specificity is critical for ICD-10. You do not want to see an interruption with your payors.

AAPC released recent study results showing clinical documentation of more than 20,000 physicians with only 63% of current documentation adequate to support the ICD-10 requirements. Predictions show one of the largest problems following the October 1, 2014 implementation date for ICD-10 will be documentation insufficient to support the specificity requirements.

Posted on: 02-6-2014 by: Tiffany Lantz

By: Diane Taylor, RN-BC, EHR Intelligence

If you think ICD-10 is all about new codes, you are dead wrong. ICD-10 is really about “documentation” ─ we clinicians have learned from day one that, “If it’s not documented, it wasn’t done.” This situation is even truer in the ICD-10 world, where the coder must build the ICD-10 code based on the presenting story of that patient’s visit from admissions to discharge. With all the new code options, you never know what code will be built.

Case in point: The ED physician sees and diagnoses the patient with head and chest contusions and a fractured femur caused by a motor vehicle accident (MVA). The hospital admits the patient. The nurse, who documents the patient history assessment, discovers the patient hit the vehicle in front of her on a busy residential street. The therapist teaching the patient how to crutch walk discovers new information that the patient was driving home after a fight with her in-laws and was texting when the accident occurred. The entire story is now documented fully and ready for coding to add to the claim’s reimbursement.

A “MVA”, “on a residential street,” “texting while driving” and “fighting with in-laws” are all now capable of being coded. Even though 50 percent of the new ICD-10 codes are based on laterality, there are so many new codes that can be used. Documentation matters. Specificity matters.

Real-time documentation is especially important. Care managers will need to know the documentation is present and when the patient status changes from “Observation” to “Inpatient”. They can no longer wait for the end of the shift for clinicians to document. Medical necessity must be present; if not, queries sent to physicians will likely increase. Clinical documentation improvement (CDI) specialists will have to forward clarifications to physicians if information in the clinician’s note does not correspond with what the physician documented. The volume of queries overall is expected to increase substantially. If documentation is not entered in real time, the longer that information remains on the coder’s desk, the longer the time to attain revenue and reimbursement.

Users of electronic medical record systems also need to be able to document laterality as well as perform in-depth documentation for specificity. For example, a coder will need to receive a thorough description of the wound to understand where the insertion of the IV on the body occurred, the reason for the IV order and the medication administered. To be able to describe the location of injury (i.e., is it located left or right side or upper or lower part of the body?), distal or proximal, medial or lateral, and much more will be even more critical for ICD-10 coding.

Physicians working in medical practices or clinics are expected to experience difficulty adjusting to the new ICD-10 code sets. They will be responsible for providing hospitals with information in ICD-10 form to aid their peers. Clinic orders, such as lab and radiology, will need ICD-10 diagnosis so the hospitals can process these orders appropriately. If the coordination of this level of communication doesn’t improve, patient care and treatment can be affected and denials will surely increase.

So are you really ready for ICD-10? Apparently it’s not just a coding project.

Diane Taylor, RN-BC, Delivery Manager, CTG Health Solutions, is a healthcare professional with 30-plus years’ experience with a focus on clinical transformation and change management.

Medical Document Services of Kansas, LLC (MDS) is a Wichita, Kansas healthcare document service specializing in Medical Transcription, Revenue Cycle Management, AzaleaHealth EHR, and REAL-TIME solutions. We provide efficient, accurate, affordable quality services for hospitals, clinics, and facilities of all sizes. Call 866-777-7264 today, or visit our website for more information.

Next-Generation EHR | Comprehensive Cloud Solutions

Clinical documentation has a direct impact on Revenue Cycle Management. As ICD-10 gets closer and closer, clinics, hospitals and physician offices will need to carefully examine their documentation. The long-term financial stability can be devastating if not done correctly. Physicians, coders and healthcare document specialist will need to combine efforts, but most importantly, have the right EHR in place. Comprehensive Cloud, Next-Generation, EHR is imperative moving forward! This year, 2013, has been quoted as being the “year to change EHR systems.” However, the predictions for 2014 do not look any better as dissatisfaction is on the rise for physicians and administrators. With today’s change in health care, it is more important than ever to have an EHR that meets your needs.

If your EHR is not meeting your needs, you are not alone. According to KLAS, 50% of ambulatory practices are looking to switch EHR systems.* Top reasons to make the change include an inability to achieve Meaningful Use, a lack of support, and unfulfilled promises from the vendor.

“The American Journal of Managed Care has now weighed in on the impact of electronic health records and health IT with a special issue devoted to research on the subject. The issue is highlighted by an introduction by guest editor and former National Coordinator for Health IT Farzad Mostashari, M.D., now a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institute. Mostashari notes that this latest round of health and payment reform is different because of the new tools and data that EHRs and other health IT offer.” Read More

ICD-10 requires greater specificity of documentation in the health record and an efficient revenue cycle management system.

“For over 22 years MDS has delivered a variety of medical document services, including medical transcription, editing, EHR technologies, and education programs throughout the Midwest. “The merging of advanced technology has created new demands on physicians. We offer REAL-TIME solutions while helping to improve cash flow, margins and efficiency,” says Donella Aubuchon, CEO of MDS.

MDS chose to partner with Azalea Health to offer a full range of healthcare billing services and EHR solutions to its clients. Aubuchon explains, ” This significantly impacts the administrative and financial side of a practice.” Azalea’s cloud-based software suite comes with a quality support team and a fully-integrated billing and claims management module which boasts an increase in billing accuracy and aids practices in earning up to 15% more in reimbursements. In addition to accuracy, Azalea provides a secure portal for users to both record and transmit sensitive data.”

http://www.prweb.com/releases/MDSofKansas/AzaleaHealth/prweb11319500.htm

Medical Document Services of Kansas, LLC (MDS) is a Wichita, Kansas healthcare document service specializing in Medical Transcription, Revenue Cycle Management, EHR technology, and REAL-TIME solutions. We provide efficient, accurate, affordable quality services for hospitals, clinics, and facilities of all sizes. Call 866-777-7264 today, or visit our website for more information.

MDS is excited to be a game-changer in the RCM industry!

The time is right! Let us help reduce the stress incurred by claims denials and lost profits. We focus on your practice’s non-medical, business aspects giving you time to focus on practicing medicine. EHR and RCM should work together and that is why we are offering the most competitive billing services in the industry! Cash-flow is the lifeline of your practice and there is no reason to pay upwards of 12% on receivables. This is damaging to your bottom line.

The burden cost of on-site billing can be more than costly; it can be quite straining to the company creating weighted overhead. Because time, money and resources are valuable assets, MDS’ RCM Services provide the right solution. We have certified, expert billing and coding staff to handle all operations of a patient encounter, securely and accurately. Our software dashboard(s) provide a process and visibility in real time, at the point of care.

Our staff and software support team have a combined 20+ years in billing service analysis, RCM, and business operations and review. Our experience in healthcare documentation with state-specific billing rules and regulations set us apart from others in the industry. We KNOW our business.

Aging population, Obamacare causes increase demand in doctors by 2025

Aging population, Obamacare causes increase demand in doctors by 2025.

MDS Crosses State Lines to Partner with Azalea Health

Wichita, KS (September 19, 2013) – Wichita-based medical document services company, MDS of Kansas (MDS) joins forces with Azalea Health (Azalea) to provide clients with a billing service and complete cloud-based electronic health records (EHR) solution, Azalea EHR.

For over 22 years MDS has delivered a variety of medical document services, including transcription, editing, EHR integration, and education programs throughout the Midwest. “The merging of advanced technology with continued emphasis on efficient and accurate healthcare documentation has created new demands on physicians. We offer REAL-TIME solutions while helping to improve cash flow, margins and efficiency.” says Donella Aubuchon, CEO of MDS.

MDS chose to partner with Azalea Health to offer a full range of healthcare billing services and EHR solutions to its clients. Aubuchon explains, “The specificity of documentation in the health record significantly impacts the administrative and financial side of a practice.” Azalea’s cloud-based software suite comes with a quality support team and a fully-integrated billing and claims management module which boasts an increase in billing accuracy and aids practices in earning 15% more in reimbursements. In addition to accuracy, Azalea provides a secure portal for users to both record and transmit sensitive data.

###

About MDS of Kansas:
MDS of Kansas, L.L.C. is a small business located at 205 S. Hillside and offers Medical Transcription services, education programs for Medical Transcription and Medical Scribes, as well as Medical Billing & Coding services. For more information, visit www.MDSofKansas.com or call (866) 777-7264.

About Azalea Health
Azalea Health (Azalea) is a leading provider of cloud-based healthcare solutions and services. Azalea provides Electronic Health Records (EHR), Practice Management Systems (PMS), Electronic Prescribing (eRx), Laboratory Ordering and Resulting, Patient Health Records Portal, Telemedicine and Health Information Exchanges (HIE), as well as Revenue Cycle Management Services (RCM), and Precertification Services. For more information, visit www.AzaleaHealth.com or call (877) 777-7686.

Medical Document Services of Kansas, LLC (MDS) is a Wichita, Kansas healthcare document service specializing in Medical Transcription, Revenue Cycle Management, EHR technology, Medical Scribe education and REAL-TIME solutions. We provide efficient, accurate, affordable quality services for hospitals, clinics, and facilities of all sizes. Call 866-777-7264 today, or visit our website for more information.

Copy & Paste is not okay? Say what???

“Seventy-four to 90 percent of physicians use the copy/paste function in their EHRs, and between 20 to 78 percent of physician notes are copied text, according to a September AHIMA report.”

“It’s become such a compliance and payment problem that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius together with Attorney General Eric Holder wrote a letter last year to industry medical groups underscoring the seriousness of doctors “gaming the system, possibly to obtain payments to which they are not entitled.”

We have spent a lot of time educating our students and MTs about the deadliness of the copy/paste function in medical transcription. There can be serious errors made and the veteran healthcare documentation specialist has learned this over the last decade or two. However, it is apparently common to see this going on in the EHR. Take a look …

EHR copy and paste? Better think twice
Healthcare IT News
Who would have thought that something so simple as copy and paste could have such serious consequences? Speaking at the MGMA annual conference in San Diego, Diana Warner, director at AHIMA, confirmed the seriousness of inappropriately using copy and paste functions in electronic health records. And the government agrees — it’s no laughing matter.

Medical Documentation (transcription) & ICD-10

So much buzz out there with M-Modal’s crappy news. It is sad to see US jobs lost to off-shore (again). It is very frustrating, as well as devastating, for those affected. Now more than ever, it is important for MTs, the ones who really want to stay in this industry, to educate and re-tool, and just be diverse! Be ready for whatever comes our way. However, we are believers in dictation because we are listening to our physician friends. We hear what they are saying and we are listening to insurance auditors for major companies. Increased documentation is coming; it will be sink or swim for some and many experts believe the only way physicians will survive is to go back to dictating. Take some time and read the articles below. They contain interesting information on why we could see a push-back on dictation. The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and ICD-10 are key reasons. Then you have the physicians who are tired of the clerical roles they have had to assume with EHR.

“These new changes will increase the need for skilled medical transcription and medical coding” Read More.

“Whether you are an advocate or a detractor of Obamacare, we do know that it is going to dramatically increase the required amount of documentation. Secondly, we know that the buzzword for ICD-10 (beyond the other buzzword “PAIN”) is “specificity.” Read more.

“Assuming those medical transcription companies that are here today are still on the scene on Oct. 1, 2013, not having been acquired or retired, (and there certainly are fewer and fewer of them!) I believe they will enjoy increased dictation with the changeover from ICD-9 to ICD-10.” Read more.

The Perfect Storm! Opportunities!