Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Make Your Medical Office Staff More Efficient in 2010!

It is the end of the year, many medical offices are looking back at what went wrong and looking forward to what can be better for the new year. Healthcare is in reform. Everyone is waiting to see what changes will come about and when. That includes prior authorization/pre-certification for advanced imaging. For now, it is business as usual for the health insurance companies. In order for your patient to get that MRI, CT, PET scan or nuclear medicine study, your medical office staff will still have to obtain prior authorization/pre-certification. Is it going to be easier than last year? No. I suspect it will be more difficult in the future. And it will probably be one of the areas health insurance companies, Medicaid and Medicare will use to cut corners to contain cost. It is all about the bottom line you know! Well, what about your bottom line? Medical offices also need to be profitable. As you look at your bottom line for the past year, think about what you can do better this next year. If you could give your staff 25-50% more time to do other tasks, would that not be of benefit to you? The one-of-a-kind training program that I offer can reduce cost, staff frustration and improve patient outcomes by teaching your staff how to perform prior authorization more efficiently and confidently. By purchasing the training program before year end, you are also eligible for the tax write off.(IRS section 162, check with your tax advisor). Contact me today to get started! http://www.rosewoodconsulting.biz/

Happy New Year!

Monday, December 21, 2009

The Senate Has Passed the Health Care Bill....

The health care bill has passed the senate. Now we await the final revision of the bill and votes from the house and senate before the president can sign it into law. Then, the real questions will need to be answered. How are the health insurance companies going to react? President Obama has already placed additional wording into the bill that health insurance companies will not be allowed to raise premiums prior to the bill being enacted. We all know the health insurance companies are going to do whatever it takes to save their bottom line. We do not know what that will be yet but I am sure we will all know in due time.

In the meantime, are you confident your staff is prepared to handle precertifications (prior authorizations) for advanced radiology procedures? Are you experiencing delays or denials from health insurance companies for your prior authorizations of MRI, CT, PET scan and nuclear medicine scans? I can train your staff to be better prepared for what many are saying is going to be an increase in precertification/prior authorization for advanced imaging by health insurance companies. Visit my website for more details.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Healthcare Debate Continues!

What does this mean to you as a medical provider or medical office? It means that no one knows what the outcome will be for healthcare reform. In the meantime, it is business as usual for the health insurance companies. They are still requiring prior authorization (aka precertification) for radiological procedures(MRI, CT, PET scan, nuclear medicine studies). If you are still having problems with this process, contact us to start your training program today. Order by the end of the year and receive 45 days of follow-up consulting services instead of 30 days! Remember, this is also a great tax deduction for your medical office! (see IRS section 162 and your tax consultant for details)

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Did you know?......

Did you know that a standard CT of the brain exposes the patient to an equivalent of 115 chest xrays? With radiation exposure errors in the recent headlines as noted in an article posted in the Wall Street Journal, More Patients Got Radiation Overdoses in CT Scans, it is the responsibility of the imaging facility to ensure the correct dose of radiation is being used. It is also the responsibility of the medical provider to weigh the risks of doing a CT vs an MRI or alternative study in the non-urgent setting.Check out the radiation equivalency chart link located on my website. It is a great tool to educate staff and medical providers as to the amount of radiation the patient is receiving.