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News 5/21/18

May 21, 2018 News No Comments

Top News

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Local healthcare leaders consider the breakaway of 100 Mecklenburg Medical Group physicians from Atrium Health (NC) as the start of a small but growing trend of physician groups becoming frustrated with hospital employment and opting instead for independence. The former Atrium-affiliated physicians claimed they had no wiggle room to refer patients outside of the health system’s network, and ultimately opted for a somewhat high-profile lawsuit against Atrium after contract changes reduced their compensation and RN staffing levels, and added a 30-mile radius non-compete clause.

Research from Black Book also confirms the trend: Providers working for independent or physician-led organizations increased from 67 to 72 percent between 2016 and 2017, reversing a six-year decline. The research company’s latest analysis has also found that 68 percent of physician groups of 10 or more will seek outside financial and clinical help to transition to value-based care business models by Q2 of next year.


Webinars

May 24 (Thursday) 1:00 ET. “Converting Consumers into Patients: Strategies for Creating Engaging Digital Experiences People Demand.” Sponsor: Healthwise. Presenters: Antonia Chappell, director of consumer solutions, Healthwise; Josh Schlaich, senior product manager, Healthwise. Nearly three-quarters of US adults use a digital channel to manage their health and the internet to track down health information. It’s clear that consumers have come to expect online interactions as an integral part of their overall patient experience. In fact, the Internet may be the first way people come in contact with your organization. They have more choice than ever on where to get healthcare services, and their decisions are increasingly influenced by how well organizations connect with them in the digital space. This webinar will show you how to create engaging digital and web experiences that convert casual consumers into patients and keep them satisfied throughout their entire patient journey.

June 5 (Tuesday) 1:00 ET. “Increase Referrals and Patient Satisfaction with a Smarter ‘Find a Doctor’ Web Search.” Sponsors: Phynd Technologies, Healthwise. Presenters: Joseph H. Schneider, MD, MBA, FAAP, retired SVP/CHIO, Indiana University Health; Keith Belton, VP of marketing, Phynd. A recent survey found that 84 percent of patients check a hospital’s website before booking an appointment. However, ‘Find a Doctor’ search functions often frustrate them because their matching functionality is primitive and the provider’s information is incomplete or outdated. Referring physicians need similarly robust tools to find the right specialist and to send the patient to the right location. Attendees of this webinar will learn how taxonomy-driven Provider Information Management improves patient and referrer satisfaction by intelligently incorporating the provider’s location, insurance coverage, specialty and subspecialty, and services offered that can be searched via patient-friendly terms.

Check out the recording of last week’s webinar titled “You Think You Might Want to Be a Consultant?” with Frank Poggio.  Additional previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre for information.


Telemedicine

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Ambulatory management company Nobilis Health will add telemedicine services at its 30 facilities in Texas and Arizona.

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Therachat adds EHR data exporting-capabilities to its mental health-focused app.

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New York City-based eye car telemedicine startup SimpleContacts raises $16 million, bringing total funding to $26 million.

The Washington Post highlights the ways in which mental health professionals and dieticians are using telemedicine to help patients with eating disorders successfully navigate trips to the grocery store. “Grocery store therapy” (also known as exposure therapy) aided by video conference tech like FaceTime has been found to significantly reduce eating disorder symptoms, according to a recent Stanford University study.


Other

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I almost laughed out loud when my dental hygienist handed me this slip of paper at the end of an appointment last week and asked me to leave a (presumably) positive review. Note to providers: Patients you’ve kept waiting 35 minutes beyond their scheduled appointment time aren’t the best ones to ask.

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Jeremy Topin, MD recounts the steady drip, drip, drip of “subtle and insidious” burnout that led him to cut back hours and ultimately work part time.

“As I adjust to my new normal, I am also adjusting my sense of self. Before, I was a partner in a successful though crazy busy practice, providing for myself and my employees. I was a teammate with seven other doctors, taking on challenges as they came. But now that I am no longer that partner, that provider, that teammate, did I fail?

I don’t think so, but that’s something I am still processing.

And as I do, I am enjoying being a parent taking my kids on college visits. I am applying to study health policy and management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where I hope to start next January. I am a high school water polo coach, working with an amazing bunch of teenagers, and a goalie for my master’s team. I am a triathlete training for another Ironman this fall. I am a husband celebrating and tackling these midlife challenges, together with my wife.

And I am a part-time doctor who still loves the challenge and privilege of taking care of patients when they are at their sickest and most vulnerable.

I am not broken. I am just getting started.”

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Kudos to Slate for uncovering the origin story of the US Digital Service’s new Twitter avatar, introduced on my favorite sci fi holiday, May the 4th. Perhaps even more interesting to me is that USDS designer Mollie Ruskin, whom the crab is named after, came to the agency after a digital design stint at Marvel. As Mr. H noted when the group was created in 2016 under President Obama, its ties to healthcare were already evident: “It … developed a new VA benefits appeals system, created a consolidated website at Vets.gov, and figured out a way for the VA and DoD to exchange scanned documents. Everybody loves the groups except fat cat IT contractors and the internal federal government bureaucracies that created the messes the kids are sent to clean up.”


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

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News 5/16/18

May 16, 2018 News No Comments

Top News

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A local news station in Minnesota digs through DEA and PDMP data to discover that more than 5,000 healthcare professionals have broken a July 2017 law that requires narcotics prescribers create an account with the State of Minnesota’s PDMP. While the law doesn’t require that prescribers use the system, it is supposedly a condition of licensure by the state’s medical board – one that so far is being ignored. When confronted with the data, Minnesota Board of Medical Practice Executive Director Ruth Martinez explained that the board doesn’t have the resources to follow up on prescriber compliance. “We are a complaint-driven process,” she said. “And frankly, if we were going on a fishing expedition all of the time then we wouldn’t be able to complete any of the rest of the important work that we have to do as a board.”

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Governor Mark Dayton was appalled by the board’s response. He claims he wasn’t aware of the lack of penalties, and believes it belies a bigger problem of “tepid initiatives” formed to combat the state’s opioid epidemic.


Webinars

May 24 (Thursday) 1:00 ET. “Converting Consumers into Patients: Strategies for Creating Engaging Digital Experiences People Demand.” Sponsor: Healthwise. Presenters: Antonia Chappell, director of consumer solutions, Healthwise; Josh Schlaich, senior product manager, Healthwise. Nearly three-quarters of US adults use a digital channel to manage their health and the internet to track down health information. It’s clear that consumers have come to expect online interactions as an integral part of their overall patient experience. In fact, the Internet may be the first way people come in contact with your organization. They have more choice than ever on where to get healthcare services, and their decisions are increasingly influenced by how well organizations connect with them in the digital space. This webinar will show you how to create engaging digital and web experiences that convert casual consumers into patients and keep them satisfied throughout their entire patient journey.

June 5 (Tuesday) 1:00 ET. “Increase Referrals and Patient Satisfaction with a Smarter ‘Find a Doctor’ Web Search.” Sponsors: Phynd Technologies, Healthwise. Presenters: Joseph H. Schneider, MD, MBA, FAAP, retired SVP/CHIO, Indiana University Health; Keith Belton, VP of marketing, Phynd. A recent survey found that 84 percent of patients check a hospital’s website before booking an appointment. However, ‘Find a Doctor’ search functions often frustrate them because their matching functionality is primitive and the provider’s information is incomplete or outdated. Referring physicians need similarly robust tools to find the right specialist and to send the patient to the right location. Attendees of this webinar will learn how taxonomy-driven Provider Information Management improves patient and referrer satisfaction by intelligently incorporating the provider’s location, insurance coverage, specialty and subspecialty, and services offered that can be searched via patient-friendly terms.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre for information.


Announcements and Implementations

Outcome Health incorporates educational content from The American College of Rheumatology’s Lupus Initiative into its digital waiting room media for physician practices.

Platinum System adds Solutionreach’s patient relationship management capabilities to its practice management and EHR software for chiropractors.

The SC Dept. of Health and Environmental Control adds Appriss Health’s NarxCare solution to its SCRIPTS PDMP, giving prescribers access to real-time patient substance abuse risk scores and recovery resources.


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

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Chadwick Prodromos, MD believes offering Bitcoin as a payment option at his Chicago orthopedic practice will help cut out healthcare middlemen like payers and health systems that have driven up healthcare costs. The practice processed its first cryptocurrency-based payment last week, and believes it will especially benefit international patients.


Telemedicine

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Digital physical therapy vendor EWellnessHealthcare brings on Boardman USA to help ramp up sales and marketing activities for federal agencies and employee groups.

KareFirst, a chain of independent advanced nurse practitioner groups in 16 states, adopts Essential Care telemedicine capabilities from Curatess.


Research and Innovation

An online reputation management survey of medical and dental providers finds that while 80 percent believe monitoring and maintaining such a reputation is important, slightly less than that (71 percent) receive reviews from 5 percent or fewer of their patients, and just 18 percent have processes in place to address negative reviews. A third of respondents will increase their budget this year for reputation management tools by up to 25 percent.

MGMA’s annual physician compensation analysis shows that primary care physician salaries have increased 10 percent in the last five years – double that of specialty physicians. The rise seems to be more indicative of compensation packages designed to attract and retain talent in a field experiencing shortages, as opposed to increased levels of productivity.


Other

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Walgreens inches closer to becoming a tightly integrated part of community healthcare with the opening of 300 non-retail locations that only offer pharmacy services to patients suffering from complicated, costly, and often chronic conditions. Chris Creamer, director of the chain’s specialty pharmacy operations, says the outlets offer “higher-touch, chronic disease state management, with the expert services that are needed” like care coordination, insurance approval, financial assistance, and medication reminders.


Sponsor Updates

  • The Center for Plain Language honors Healthwise with its Grand ClearMark Award.
  • Culbert Healthcare Solutions will exhibit at the Centricity Live 2018 User Conference May 16-18 in Las Vegas.
  • EClinicalWorks will exhibit at the 2018 Star Ratings & Quality Improvement Summit May 21-22 in Championsgate, FL.

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

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Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

News 5/14/18

May 14, 2018 News No Comments

Top News

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In a letter to Athenahealth’s Board of Directors, Elliott Management urges the company to engage in acquisition talks after hearing nothing since issuing a takeover offer of over $6 billion last week. The letter also references the interest of other prospective buyers, and takes the board to task for not yet engaging an investment bank to conduct due diligence on the offer.

In related news, Bloomberg reports that Fidelity Investments, Athenahealth’s largest shareholder, sold off over half of its shares as of April 30.


Webinars

May 16 (Wednesday) 1:00 ET. “You Think You Might Want to Be a Consultant?” Sponsor: HIStalk. Presenter: Frank Poggio, CEO/president, The Kelzon Group. Maybe you just got caught in a big re-org and don’t like where things are headed, or, after almost a year of searching for a better opportunity your buddy says, “You’ve got decades of solid experience and you’re a true professional, you should become a healthcare IT consultant.” Now you start thinking, “This could be my ticket to success. I know the healthcare industry and can show people how to do things right. The sky’s the limit!” Not so fast. Consulting offers many advantages, and many pitfalls. This webinar will discuss both the rewards and the risks of moving into a full-time consulting role, as an independent, or part of a large firm. It will present a checklist you can apply to assess whether consulting is a good fit for you, and present the ground work necessary to be a successful consultant.

May 24 (Thursday) 1:00 ET. “Converting Consumers into Patients: Strategies for Creating Engaging Digital Experiences People Demand.” Sponsor: Healthwise. Presenters: Antonia Chappell, director of consumer solutions, Healthwise; Josh Schlaich, senior product manager, Healthwise. Nearly three-quarters of US adults use a digital channel to manage their health and the internet to track down health information. It’s clear that consumers have come to expect online interactions as an integral part of their overall patient experience. In fact, the Internet may be the first way people come in contact with your organization. They have more choice than ever on where to get healthcare services, and their decisions are increasingly influenced by how well organizations connect with them in the digital space. This webinar will show you how to create engaging digital and web experiences that convert casual consumers into patients and keep them satisfied throughout their entire patient journey.

June 5 (Tuesday) 1:00 ET. “Increase Referrals and Patient Satisfaction with a Smarter ‘Find a Doctor’ Web Search.” Sponsors: Phynd Technologies, Healthwise. Presenters: Joseph H. Schneider, MD, MBA, FAAP, retired SVP/CHIO, Indiana University Health; Keith Belton, VP of marketing, Phynd. A recent survey found that 84 percent of patients check a hospital’s website before booking an appointment. However, ‘Find a Doctor’ search functions often frustrate them because their matching functionality is primitive and the provider’s information is incomplete or outdated. Referring physicians need similarly robust tools to find the right specialist and to send the patient to the right location. Attendees of this webinar will learn how taxonomy-driven Provider Information Management improves patient and referrer satisfaction by intelligently incorporating the provider’s location, insurance coverage, specialty and subspecialty, and services offered that can be searched via patient-friendly terms.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre for information.


Announcements and Implementations

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Biometric-based mental health tech vendor Medibio develops an Apple Watch app to help users monitor autonomic nervous system anomalies that correlate to mental health conditions.

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To better empower independent physicians in the transition to value-based care, AAFP, MGMA, Aledade, and several regional physician trade associations come together to form Partnership to Empower Physician-Led Care. PEPC Executive Director Kristen McGovern served under Aledade founder and CEO Farzad Mostahari, MD during his tenure as National Coordinator for Health IT.

The Healthcare Association of New York State offers free technical assistance to primary care practices working toward New York State Patient-Centered Medical Home recognition.


People

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Jeff Griggs (Apttus) joins Nextech Systems as chief revenue officer.

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Health IT consulting and staffing firm Harmony Healthcare names Bilal Mushtaq, MD (Accuity Delivery Systems) CMO.

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Practice management services company Women’s Health USA adds Kristin Mowat (Castlight Health) and Natasha Deckmann, MD (Optum) to its Board of Directors.


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

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Complete HealthCare Solutions, a value-added reseller of ambulatory health IT, acquires ambulatory-focused PDQ Billing Services.

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Virginia Women’s Center signs on with practice management company Privia Health and will rebrand to Privia Women’s Health.


Telemedicine

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Kansas Governor and physician Jeff Colyer, MD passes legislation mandating reimbursement for telemedicine visits.

The State of Illinois establishes an 18-member telemedicine task force to bring healthcare services to Medicaid patients in rural parts of the state.


Research and Innovation

An American Osteopathic Association survey of over 2,000 patients finds that 43 percent believe it’s appropriate to contact their providers via social media with questions about their care. The percentage jumps to 65 for millenials. Providers, on the other hand, are far less enthusiastic about those types of HIPAA-violating interactions.


Other

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TechRepublic puts contrasting healthcare strategies from Athenahealth and Walmart side by side in its review of HLTH 2018, especially interesting in light of Athenahealth’s clandestine review of Elliott Management’s takeover bid. While vendor CEO Jonathan Bush emphasized the need to reduce physician burnout, retail giant VPs Marcus Osborne and Lisa Woods stressed the need to cut physicians who don’t practice evidence-based medicine entirely out of the healthcare loop. They didn’t mince words when it came to verbalizing Walmart’s healthcare strategy, which thus far has included opening primary care clinics, mandating e-prescribing, and the potential acquisition of Humana: “We are going to build optimized networks and drive utilization to the highest-value providers," Osborne told the audience. "We will build networks that realize some providers just won’t cut it and won’t get any value from the network.”


Sponsor Updates

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

News 5/9/18

May 9, 2018 News No Comments

Top News

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Urgent care appointment-booking startup Solv raises $16.8 million in a Series B funding round that coincides with the addition of medical bill pay features within its app.


Webinars

May 16 (Wednesday) 1:00 ET. “You Think You Might Want to Be a Consultant?” Sponsor: HIStalk. Presenter: Frank Poggio, CEO/president, The Kelzon Group. Maybe you just got caught in a big re-org and don’t like where things are headed, or, after almost a year of searching for a better opportunity your buddy says, “You’ve got decades of solid experience and you’re a true professional, you should become a healthcare IT consultant.” Now you start thinking, "This could be my ticket to success. I know the healthcare industry and can show people how to do things right. The sky’s the limit!" Not so fast. Consulting offers many advantages, and many pitfalls. This webinar will discuss both the rewards and the risks of moving into a full-time consulting role, as an independent, or part of a large firm. It will present a checklist you can apply to assess whether consulting is a good fit for you, and present the ground work necessary to be a successful consultant.

May 24 (Thursday) 1:00 ET. “Converting Consumers into Patients: Strategies for Creating Engaging Digital Experiences People Demand.” Sponsor: Healthwise. Presenters: Antonia Chappell, director of consumer solutions, Healthwise; Josh Schlaich, senior product manager, Healthwise. Nearly three-quarters of US adults use a digital channel to manage their health and the internet to track down health information. It’s clear that consumers have come to expect online interactions as an integral part of their overall patient experience. In fact, the Internet may be the first way people come in contact with your organization. They have more choice than ever on where to get healthcare services, and their decisions are increasingly influenced by how well organizations connect with them in the digital space. This webinar will show you how to create engaging digital and web experiences that convert casual consumers into patients and keep them satisfied throughout their entire patient journey.

June 5 (Tuesday) 1:00 ET. “Increase Referrals and Patient Satisfaction with a Smarter ‘Find a Doctor’ Web Search.” Sponsors: Phynd Technologies, Healthwise. Presenters: Joseph H. Schneider, MD, MBA, FAAP, retired SVP/CHIO, Indiana University Health; Keith Belton, VP of marketing, Phynd. A recent survey found that 84 percent of patients check a hospital’s website before booking an appointment. However, ‘Find a Doctor’ search functions often frustrate them because their matching functionality is primitive and the provider’s information is incomplete or outdated. Referring physicians need similarly robust tools to find the right specialist and to send the patient to the right location. Attendees of this webinar will learn how taxonomy-driven Provider Information Management improves patient and referrer satisfaction by intelligently incorporating the provider’s location, insurance coverage, specialty and subspecialty, and services offered that can be searched via patient-friendly terms.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre for information.


Announcements and Implementations

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Wellsoft works with GoRev to launch integrated EHR, PM, and RCM software for urgent care practices.

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AdvancedMD develops Rhythm, cloud-based software that puts EHR, PM, RCM, and patient engagement tools on a single platform.

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Notable develops a transcription app for the Apple Watch that converts recorded physician/patient encounters to notes in the EHR.

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Jewett Orthopaedic Clinic (FL) will roll out healthcare kiosk technology and services from Clearwave at its 14 locations in Orlando.

CareCloud adds speech-recognition technology from NVoq to EHR documentation tools.

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Buoy Health’s chatbot healthcare app integrates Minute Clinic locations within its AI-powered prompts through a new partnership with CVS.


People

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Cathleen McCabe, MD (The Eye Associates of Manatee) joins practice management company Eye Health America as CMO.


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

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Hint Health raises $10 million in a Series A funding round led by AXA Venture Partners. The San Francisco-based company’s technology helps direct primary care companies like Peakmed and Parsley Health manage operations and payment plans.

Henry Schein will distribute Persivia’s healthcare data analytics software to its EHR and PM customers.


Research and Innovation

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An evidence review of 280 diabetes management apps finds that only 11 benefitted from any type of research, and only five demonstrated significant clinical improvements in levels of blood sugar control. The study’s authors found no mention of long-term improvements for end users,and have called for additional studies. “Because diabetes patients rely on these apps to manage their health, and so many apps have not yet been studied, there is a compelling need for improvement,” writes one of the authors. “Not only is this report beneficial for diabetes patients, but it’s a call-to-action to the research community that we need more evidence on whether these apps and others actually improve health."


Other

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The Oregon Clinic notifies patients of an email account data breach in early March that may have impacted PHI.


Sponsor Updates

  • Aprima opens registration for its user conference August 17-19 in Dallas.
  • Culbert Healthcare Solutions hosts its 12th annual employee celebration at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

News 5/7/18

May 7, 2018 News No Comments

Top News

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Elliott Management makes an all-cash offer of $160 per share for Athenahealth, putting the total transaction at more than $6 billion. The hedge fund already owns a 9-percent stake in the company. Elliott representatives believe they can close the deal in as little as three weeks, after which they plan to take the company private. In a letter to Athena shareholders, Elliott Senior Portfolio Manager Jesse Coh writes, “For many years, despite all of its advantages, AthenaHealth’s stock price has underperformed because the Company has failed to correct a host of identifiable operational issues. Today, its inability to operate effectively and scale successfully is foreclosing a tremendous value-creation opportunity to the detriment of the business and its shareholders.”


Webinars

May 9 (Wednesday) 2:00 ET. “How to Make VBC Work for You: The Business Case to Transform Into the Health System of the Future.” Sponsor: Philips Wellcentive. Presenters: Mason Beard, co-founder and chief product officer, Philips Wellcentive; Scott Cullen, MD, principal, ECG Management Consulting; Seema Mathur, director of strategy, Sage Growth Partners. How well is your organization funding its transformation to VBC? This free webinar explains how to achieve ROI as your organization transforms to meet the future. You’ll learn how VBC is impacting healthcare system management, three strategies for funding your transformation, and what the healthcare system of the future will look like.

May 16 (Wednesday) 1:00 ET. “You Think You Might Want to Be a Consultant?” Sponsor: HIStalk. Presenter: Frank Poggio, CEO/president, The Kelzon Group. Maybe you just got caught in a big re-org and don’t like where things are headed, or, after almost a year of searching for a better opportunity your buddy says, “You’ve got decades of solid experience and you’re a true professional, you should become a healthcare IT consultant.” Now you start thinking, “This could be my ticket to success. I know the healthcare industry and can show people how to do things right. The sky’s the limit!” Not so fast. Consulting offers many advantages, and many pitfalls. This webinar will discuss both the rewards and the risks of moving into a full-time consulting role, as an independent, or part of a large firm. It will present a checklist you can apply to assess whether consulting is a good fit for you, and present the ground work necessary to be a successful consultant.

May 24 (Thursday) 1:00 ET. “Converting Consumers into Patients: Strategies for Creating Engaging Digital Experiences People Demand.” Sponsor: Healthwise. Presenters: Antonia Chappell, director of consumer solutions, Healthwise; Josh Schlaich, senior product manager, Healthwise. Nearly three-quarters of US adults use a digital channel to manage their health and the internet to track down health information. It’s clear that consumers have come to expect online interactions as an integral part of their overall patient experience. In fact, the Internet may be the first way people come in contact with your organization. They have more choice than ever on where to get healthcare services, and their decisions are increasingly influenced by how well organizations connect with them in the digital space. This webinar will show you how to create engaging digital and web experiences that convert casual consumers into patients and keep them satisfied throughout their entire patient journey.

June 5 (Tuesday) 1:00 ET. “Increase Referrals and Patient Satisfaction with a Smarter ‘Find a Doctor’ Web Search.” Sponsors: Phynd Technologies, Healthwise. Presenters: Joseph H. Schneider, MD, MBA, FAAP, retired SVP/CHIO, Indiana University Health; Keith Belton, VP of marketing, Phynd. A recent survey found that 84 percent of patients check a hospital’s website before booking an appointment. However, ‘Find a Doctor’ search functions often frustrate them because their matching functionality is primitive and the provider’s information is incomplete or outdated. Referring physicians need similarly robust tools to find the right specialist and to send the patient to the right location. Attendees of this webinar will learn how taxonomy-driven Provider Information Management improves patient and referrer satisfaction by intelligently incorporating the provider’s location, insurance coverage, specialty and subspecialty, and services offered that can be searched via patient-friendly terms.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre for information.


Announcements and Implementations

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Urgent care chain CityMD (NY) sees a 20-percent decrease in staffing needs after implementing staff scheduling software from Intrigma.

GI North (GA) and GI Partners of Illinois select GMed’s EHR, PM and MIPS-friendly reporting software for gastroenterologists.

DrChrono adds patient engagement messaging from Cliniconex to its EHR for urgent care facilities.


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

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MTBC will acquire the practice management, revenue cycle and group purchasing organization assets of Houston-based Orion Healthcorp and its 13 affiliates. MTBC CEO Stephen Snyder expects the acquisition will open up opportunities in “long-term practice management services, niche hospital offerings, and a pharmaceutical group purchasing organization that provides discounts to … physician customers.” Orion Healthcorp parent company Constellation Healthcare Technologies filed for bankruptcy in March.


People

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Miami-based Leon Medical Centers names Roymi Membiela (UHealth) VP and chief consumer officer.


Government and Politics

A federal jury in Massachusetts finds gynecologist Rita Luthra, MD guilty of violating HIPAA and obstructing a criminal healthcare investigation after investigators find that she allowed pharma reps from Warner Chilcott to access patient files as part of a kickback scheme, and then lied about it. Warner Chilcott paid $125 million for its part in the 2015 crime. Luthra has yet to be sentenced.


Telemedicine

Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin signs into law a bill that mandates Medicaid and payer reimbursement for telemedicine services, including those provided by PAs, psychologists, and family therapists. The law will go into effect in July of next year.


Sponsor Updates

  • Medicity publishes a new perspective paper, “Interoperability 2.0: How to Consume, Organize and Share Health Data to Achieve Greater Value.”
  • PerfectServe will exhibit at the 2018 ANIA Annual Conference May 10-12 in Orlando.

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

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