MGMA13 Wrap-Up 10/9/13

I departed San Diego bright and early Wednesday morning and thanks to Wi-Fi on the plane I only have about 400 emails left to read (if I owe you a reply, please give me a day or two.)

I covered a fair amount of ground in my previous posts but here are a few random, if rambling musings. Hold on for the ride.

I had noticed a particular vendor posted several Tweets encouraging attendees to stop by their booth at specific times for a demo of their latest software. I headed to their booth at the specified time and had a conversation with an employee that went something like this:

Me: Is the demo of the new EMR version just for existing customers or would it be helpful for someone who just wants to see your EMR?

Vendor: It’s really for existing customers. Are you looking to buy a new EMR?

Me: Actually I am not with a practice.

Vendor: Oh, well you might just want to come back in a couple of hours and see our presentation on ICD-10 because that will include information applicable to anyone.

Me: Hmm. Okay.

So, I went away in frustration, wondering why I was not offered some sort of EMR demo, not to mention why Vendor would think a presentation on ICD-10 would be a good substitute for a look at their latest EMR software. Could it be because my badge did not say “practice administrator?” Maybe they were thinking I only wanted a demo to get in the drawing for their tablet giveaway. Maybe next year.

On the other hand, I had an amazing experience with the folks at CompuGroup Medical. The staff was wearing the t-shirts above, which I thought were quite clever. I told a couple of the ladies I really loved the shirts, and they mentioned they had been giving them away but had just run out. I expressed my disappointment, continued chatting a bit, and then the CEO Norbert Fischl walked over and told me he’d give me his t-shirt if I I took a few minutes to hear about their disease management platform. To clarify he did not give me the shirt off his back – just an extra one he was taking home. It was more than a fair trade and I learned about their offering that integrates patient data from EMRs, claims, labs, pharmacies and other sources to identify at-risk patients based on evidence-based clinical standards. Providers can then create personalized health goals for individual patients and track their progress. Their target market includes ACOs and payers that need tools for automating the chronic disease management process and for proactively identifying at-risk patients. CompuGroup also offers several EHR, PM, RCM, and portal solutions and internationally sells products for clinicians, hospitals, pharmacies, insurers, and the government. If there were an award for Best Effort to Draw Someone Into Your Booth and Look at Your Product, CompuGroup and Norbert would win hands down.

I chatted with one of the Practice Fusion reps for a while. They seem like a young and enthusiastic bunch, which gives me some insight into the company’s culture. I asked him how the company made money if the EMR was free, and he told me about the ads that display in the software. I tried to get him to tell me what the company was doing in terms of selling de-identified PHI but he claimed he didn’t know much about that. I’m pretty sure he was telling me the truth since he was primarily involved with getting providers signed up on the EMR. I believe he said that the company currently has 30,000 active physician users.

Speaking of Practice Fusion, I had a few conversations with folks about their recent $70 million round of funding. It seems to have a number of smart people scratching their heads, though one person did tell me he believes the company is well-run and does good job continually enhancing the product.

Julie at Clinicspectrum stopped me and told me a little bit about her company, which provides back office services for practices, hospitals, and billing services at a set rate of $6.50 per hour. They off-shore their services but you have to love the simplicity of the model.

I asked several vendors how the show was and the general consensus was very positive. Several expressed disappointment, however, with the limited amount of time the exhibit hall was open. One person shared MGMA’s explanation that they had studied trends from previous years and determined that most leads came in during the particular hours the hall was open this year. Perhaps, but if a vendor is investing thousands of dollars at a trade show and has flown in staff from across the country, I would think most rather have the exhibits open more than three hours a day. Not to mention that lunchtime overlapped the exhibit hall hours, meaning that attendees who wanted to eat had that much less time to check out the exhibits. It will be interesting to see if MGMA decides to keep the same schedule next year.

A friend told me I should check out PatientPoint and it was a good recommendation. Their platform includes a patient check-in/care coordination component that integrates with a practice’s EHR and scheduling system; an exam room piece that takes the place of traditional paper brochures so patients can read up on different conditions while waiting for the physician; an internal communication system for the practice; and, a waiting room monitor to display educational content. They also offer a platform for hospitals and for consumers. It’s all about coordinated care and patient engagement.

Speaking of engagement, it’s amusing to hear the different ways vendors attempt to engage people. As I strolled the aisles, I had eager sales reps ask if I wanted to save money on billing; if I was looking for new options to handle after-hours phone calls; if I had considered using automated patient reminders, etc.  Amy at Patient Prompt even offered me a 20 discount on her company’s appointment reminder services if I signed up at the show (I declined.)

I wanted to chat with the Aprima folks but I never could get anyone’s attention. I was happy to see they had their HIStalk Sponsor sign displayed, as did Wolters Kluwer, IMO, Allscripts, PatientKeper, Vitera, and about 20 others.

I bet we’ll see more and more companies like Ellkay, which offers data migration and conversion services for EHRs. They told me business is booming.

I noticed Allscripts was showing the FollowMyHealth portal, which they purchased from JarDogs earlier this year. The rep told me they have been selling more of the FollowMyHealth product than the Intuit/Medfusion platform because customers say it offers more functionality. Allscripts is selling FollowMyHealth to their own customers, as well as non-Allscripts practices.

MGMA’s Jeb Shepard and Jennifer Gasperini led a session offering updates on healthcare-related happenings in Washington. It covered a lot of ground and was informative but also pretty depressing. Jeb also gave an excellent and non-political explanation of the ACA and the insurance marketplace. The speakers offered their email addresses in case attendees have questions in the future. Duly noted.

In terms of booth traffic, athenahealth seemed to be buzzing every time I walked by. I also listened in on a demo and overheard one of the execs being drilled by a CIO-type on data security, connectivity guarantees, redundancy and similar topics. The answers were solid, giving me insight into some of athena’s success.

Sunday afternoon, while waiting for the exhibits to open, I chatted with an administrator from a large practice that uses Vitera. He had experience with a number of other products, including Greenway. He felt strongly that once the Vitera/Greenway merger was complete, the Greenway management team would be taking over because their product, reputation, and company culture was superior. I disagreed but shared this conversation with a few other folks over the next couple of days. The general consensus: Vista and the Vitera team will end up calling the shots, though the Greenway leaders may stay on for a while.

I may need to reflect on this a couple more days, but if I could pick a single word to summarize attendees’ general state of mind it would be “anxious.” Anxious, as in they see many changes looming in terms of payment models, practice ownership, and government regulations. Maximizing revenues and cutting costs remain the top priorities, meaning practices must figure out the most painless path to ICD-10, evaluate whether the benefits of later MU stages are worth the effort, and whether their physicians (and patients) would be better served if they consolidated with a health system or another group, or participated in an ACO, or converted to a PCMH model. HIT tools are available to ease some of the pains, but it’s no doubt overwhelming to find, implement, and pay for new products, especially as more vendors consolidate and products are sunset. Gosh, do I sound like the oft-pessimistic Mr. H with all this doom and gloom?

Thanks MGMA for a well-run, informative, and fun conference. See you next year in Vegas!

Email Inga.

From MGMA 10/8/13 Afternoon Update

I’m a little weary from my day so this update will be brief. I’ll have a complete wrap-up tomorrow.

I have an important announcement to make: I’ve decided to stay in San Diego and open a hair salon.

Dear Emdeon: please send me a pair of the lime green shoes.

Thanks Capario for displaying your HIStalk sign!

Sadly I missed out on NextGen’s chair massage.

My favorite booth. Cool couches, open, and welcoming.

If I hadn’t just had my picture taken in a boa at Greenway’s party I would have donned a fun get-up and taken advantage of Trizetto’s photo booth.

I don’t recall what Emdeon was giving away but a crowd of folks were hoping to win something big.

Nothing draws more people than a drawing for $1,000, courtesy of MGMA and their sponsors.

I intentionally went light on swag, but I am optimistic I will get an email from someone saying I won an iPad mini.

I have the best story to go with this tee shirt, and I will share it tomorrow. For now let’s just say that the CEO of CompuGroup Medical rocks.

Happy travels if you are heading home Tuesday. If you are still in San Diego tonight, I’ll be the one with swollen feet and flats.

Email Inga.

From MGMA 10/8/13

Fun, fun, fun in San Diego Monday night!

I recruited an enthusiastic friend and we hit seven parties and still managed to get back to our hotels at a decent hour. We started at Practice Insight’s event at the Marriott’s Marina Kitchen. Above is the amazing view we enjoyed while sipping on wine and eating maple-smoked bacon on a stick (kind of like a lollipop – totally decadent.) As we looked at the harbor we fantasized about moving to San Diego and its seemingly perfect climate.

We cut short our day-dreaming to head to CareCloud’s party, which was also at the Marriott. The outside venue was near the pool and spilled onto the lush green lawn. CareCloud offered chair massages, which seemed to be a big hit. I noticed that CareCloud also brought along a few demo stations to show off their product, which actually seemed like a pretty smart thing to do. The crowd was definitely larger than I anticipated and the location was perfect.

Of course I noticed that the CareCloud ladies working registration were wearing some hot shoes.

We jumped into a pedicab (which is much more fun than a regular cab) and headed to GE Healthcare’s party at the Hard Rock Hotel. Yet another beautiful venue and the fire pits offered the perfect amount of heat. We snacked on some tacos, had a glass of wine, and chatted with a few GE folks. Compared to CareCloud’s large event, GE’s seemed more exclusive, which of course made us feel quite special.

Next we headed to the Solamar Hotel, where both Ingenious Med and athenahealth were hosting parties. Ingenious had taken over the Jsix restaurant, which had a nice bar and lots of friendly Ingenious employees greeting everyone.

We then took an elevator up to the Solamar’s pool bar to athenahealth’s party. The athena folks know how to have fun and Jonathan Bush was his typical boisterous self and talking to everyone about everything. We snacked on some yummy appetizers, had another glass of wine, and chatted with several folks in the large and happy crowd. I really would have loved to stay longer and listened to Jonathan address the crowd, but we had other parties calling.

We strolled to the Greenway party, which had a roaring 20’s theme. The photo sessions in the back room were a big hit and we put on a couple hats and boas and got our picture snapped. It’s a great souvenir and a fun idea. We also got to keep our long pearl necklaces and mustaches on a stick. Mustaches on a stick make me happy.

Finally, we jumped in a cab and headed to Vitera’s event on the USS Midway. The ship was by far the coolest venue of the evening. Its size is amazing (apparently holds 4,000 people) and a few dozen planes are permanently parked inside the hangar. Vitera had a fireworks display and a great band with several female singers. Lots of people were dancing, including Vitera’s CEO Matt Hawkins. The party was really over the top on several levels. If/when HIMSS ever returns to San Diego, I am voting for the Midway as the site for HIStalkapalooza.

Finally, we jumped in another pedicab, rubbed our tired feet, and headed to our hotels. Thanks for all our hosts for the hospitality, the great drinks, and yummy food!

On Tuesday’s agenda: a couple of sessions and lots of time in the exhibit hall.

Email Inga.

From MGMA 10/7/13 Afternoon Update

I am about to head out to a few parties but first want to share some of the highlights of my day.

George Will was the morning keynote speaker. Since he is known primarily for being a conservative political commentator I was quite surprised and disappointed that he made no more than a passing mention about the current government shutdown. He focused more on the poor state of our economy, how we got here, and what might happen if things don’t change. He ended on a somewhat optimistic note, saying that Americans are “thrifty industrialists” and we will eventually figure things out. Will is quick-witted, tells some good stories, and offers some logical arguments to support his opinions. I am not sure I agree with all his opinions and wished he offered more concrete suggestions for fixing our current problems, but all in all I enjoyed his presentation.

Next I sat in a standing room only session on EHR and risk management led by the consultant Nancy Babbitt. She offered some solid suggestions for ways practices can tweak the use of their EHRs (and other technology) in order to mitigate risk and provide better customer service. I didn’t notice anyone leaving early so I’d say the crowd valued what she had to say.

Speaking of standing room only, I noticed this tweet from someone complaining about not being able to get into a couple of sessions. Don’t know if Melissa was just having bad luck or if overcrowding is a widespread issue.

After the EHR risk session, I stood with the crowds for 45 minutes until the exhibit hall opened. I am pretty frustrated with the limited exhibit hall hours and have heard other attendees expressing similar disappointment. I think hall is open for a total of about seven hours, including the reception last night and during an extended lunch hour today and tomorrow. I have to believe the vendors would also like more face time with attendees. I realize the goal is limit the competition between sessions and the exhibits but given that there are 360 vendors, seven hours is not enough time to explore things, much less schedule any one-on-one meetings. Today I had only about 30 minutes in the hall before having to head out for other meeting.

While waiting for the exhibits to open, I did have time to check out some of the fashion on display. Here are some sandals I thought looked reasonably comfortable and also cute. Bonus points for the purse.

Once I made it into the hall, I ran into Maria from athenahealth. That girl always brings her A game when it comes to shoes.

Thanks VersusTech folks for the picture of your HIStalk sign in your booth. I’ll be by tomorrow to check it out.

Best session of the day for me was a discussion on IT in Healthcare, which included panelists Stephen McCallister, Waco Hoover, Rosemarie Nelson, and a strangely dressed female; MGMA’s Derek Kosiorek moderated.  (Rosemarie – I’m still waiting for my free glass of wine.)

Official attendance, according to MGMA: 4,600. I also learned the official theme of the conference is “meeting practice success face-to-face.”

I’m off to check out the after-hours party scene. Look for details on the escapades tomorrow!

Email Inga.

From MGMA 10/7/13

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The MGMA13 crowds arriving Sunday were greeted with chamber of commerce weather: clear skies and a high of 86 degrees. I’m not sure how many folks come early for the pre-conference sessions but I wouldn’t be surprised if a few attendees played hooky and basked in the sun yesterday afternoon. Today’s high is a more seasonal 75 degrees – still pretty darn nice.

I arrived early afternoon and I grabbed a bite to eat at an outdoor cafe before heading over to the convention center. I arrived too late for the opening speaker (former Blue Angels pilot John Foley), but by all counts he provided a motivating message on leadership.

The doors to the exhibit hall opened at 4:30 and the crowds immediately poured in. Instead of a traditional opening reception, MGMA hosted the two-hour reception inside the exhibit hall. Given that the exhibit hall is only opened a total for seven hours through Wednesday I guess it was an efficient way to allow people to socialize and see exhibits.

The food looked fine with a mix of Mexican, Italian, and assorted finger foods. Not surprisingly, the lines at the bars were longer than the food lines.

Thanks to all the HIStalk sponsors displaying their desktop signs. If you see one, please tell the vendor thanks for supporting HIStalk!  Vendors with HISalk signs included Aprima, Emdeon, Iatric, Culbert Healthcare, Quest, Versus, Ingenious, and AdvancedMD.

Overheard in the exhibit hall: “I am spending $3,000 to be here so I need to show my doctors that I found something that was worth my while for being here.” Wish I could have listened in more to learn what her game plan was.

MGMA rolled out a new brand which it says “signifies the Association’s strategic direction and capitalizes on MGMA’s current work to serve members.” I am sure there will be more said in the opening session but it appears the MGMA-ACMPE name has

been dropped in favor of “MGMA.”

Availity gets an early vote in the cool booth category. Very open and comfy couches to sit on while listening to presentations.

NextGen had a smaller booth this year. Last year they had a smaller booth than the previous year so I guess they are on a “less is more” kick. GE, which didn’t exhibit last year, is in a back corner, while Vitera, athena, Greenway, Pulse, and Allscripts all have big booths that drew decent crowds during the reception.

Several vendors appeared to be no-shows.

I won a $5 Starbucks gift card from the Emdeon folks when I played their stacking game. It wasn’t too hard so it’s worth a couple of minutes of your time if you enjoy a free cup of coffee.

My Monday agenda includes a keynote session with George Will (I am sure he will have a comment or two on the government shutdown), two or three educational sessions, and another stroll through the exhibit hall. I have lined up the evening party schedule to ensure the maximum number of events before my feet give out.

If you are at MGMA, drop me an email with your impressions.