The article about Pediatric Associates in CA has a nugget with a potentially outsized impact: the implication that VFC vaccines…
News 12/9/20
Top News
Ro signals its intent to offer in-home healthcare with its acquisition of WorkPath, which has developed app-based, appointment-scheduling software for house-call companies.
Webinars
December 15 (Tuesday) 1 ET. “Highlights from the 2021 CPT Code Set Update.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: June Bronnert, MSHI, RHIA, senior director of global clinical services, IMO; Shelly Jude, RHIA, RHIT, mapping manager, IMO. Top coding professionals will highlight the most important changes to the Current Procedural Terminology code set that take effect on January 1, including crucial additions, deletions, and revisions; how to communicate Official Coding Guidelines changes to the healthcare team; and a description of the impact that the code set update could have on practice.
Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present your own.
Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock
Primary care company Carbon Health will open a dozen more clinics in California over the coming months. The San Francisco-based company, which announced a $100 million Series C funding round last month, has developed proprietary health IT including an app and virtual visit capabilities.
Rapper and music executive Rick Ross invests in telemedicine startup Jetdoc, also signing on as an adviser and spokesperson. Launched in February by former Trusted Health Plans CEO Tommy Duncan, the service is available in Florida, with expansion to additional states expected next year.
Healthcare transaction advisory firm VMG Health acquires RR Health Strategies, a medical coding, compliance, and operational management consulting firm.
Announcements and Implementations
Umatilla County Human Services in Oregon will replace its legacy EHR with EnSoftek’s DrCloudEHR.
Other
A Press Ganey telemedicine survey and analysis of 1.3 million patients from 154 practices offers insight into what they do and don’t like about virtual encounters, and how providers can improve upon them:
- Patients are more likely to give positive reviews after virtual visits than after in-person visits because they feel they more of their physician’s attention.
- The process is lacking: Nearly 90% would recommend their provider after a video visit, but only 76% would recommend doing so virtually.
- Researchers suggest providers develop a central resource team to help staff adopt more telemedicine-friendly workflows, and patients become more comfortable with virtual encounters.
- Specialties should develop protocols to triage patients into virtual care or in-person care.
- Telemedicine protocols should be consistent across an organization’s care setting so that patients encounter the same look and feel when video chatting with their PCP or dermatologist.
The Schenectady Fire Department in New York pilots a telemedicine program that so far has enabled its paramedics to treat 27 of its 41 telemedicine patients at the scene rather than transporting them to the ER. Department officials anticipate the program will see a similar success rate in the coming months, as 12,000 of its 18,000 annual calls are for medical reasons.
COVID vaccinations commenced in the UK earlier this week, with 81 year-old William Shakespeare becoming the second recipient. The Twitterverse was quick to respond with references to Vacbeth and #TamingoftheFlu.
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Blog Posts
- Kiosk, HEDIS, and More: Welcoming Patients to the Medical Landscape (EClinicalWorks)
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