The following excerpt is from our recent whitepaper, "5 Predictions for ICD-10 & How You Should React." By now, it has to be assumed that all medical organizations and practices have paid heed to the transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10. It’s an understatement to say that anyone unprepared for ICD-10 at this point will need to hit the ground running to catch up.

Technology has dramatically changed the way physicians practice medicine today. Connected devices do everything from helping patients manage diabetes and exercise schedules to enabling video conferencing with specialists around the globe to treat complicated cases. In many ways, it has improved both quality and continuity of care while empowering patients to take control of their personal health and wellness. However, simply plugging into the cloud isn’t enough. Optimizing cloud performance is only achievable with stellar software and compatible devices in the mix.

A National Institutes of Health (NIH) study conducted several years ago revealed convenience was the most common reason patients change primary doctors. More than half of the 1423 patients responding to the survey (53%) were willing to find a new general practitioner that was closer to their residence or easier to visit. The same study revealed that recommendations from trusted peers and family members (36%) and positive expectations of service (37%) also ranked high among the stated reasons that a patient was willing to leave one doctor for another.

Twitter just celebrated a birthday. Nine years after its launch in 2006, it is hard to ignore the influence this social media pioneer has on most industries, including healthcare. Twitter boasts over 300 million active users and millions of tweets a day. A small handful of these tweeters is what marketing gurus call influencers. In other words, people follow them to see the latest trends and get the news that matters. Consider 10 powerful Twitter influencers in the healthcare market.

The following excerpt is from an article found on Healthcare Finance News. It was written by Susan Morse. With implementation of ICD-10 less than three months away, revenue cycle teams are breathing a little more easily since the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ announcement of a year’s grace period in which claims will not be denied because they’re not specific enough.

Like all other people of science, physicians are accustomed to dealing with cold, hard facts. They cannot provide the best care possible to patients if they don’t understand the numbers behind the treatments, such as success rates of one procedure over another or how long it typically takes for a patient to progress from one stage of illness to becoming completely healed. Statistics also shed light on local demographics of patients as well as the business conditions under which physicians do their work. With that in mind, here are 10 statistics that every physician needs to know.

As the owner or executive in charge of a medical organization, you know all too well how easy it is to procrastinate when it comes to training staff to use a new protocol or to become familiar with new software. It seems like there will never be an ideal opportunity to disrupt your schedule to set aside time for each member of the team to learn a new way of doing things. This is especially important when it comes to dealing with the upcoming mandated change from the International Classification of Diseases code version 9 to ICD-10. After multiple delays and offering a few extensions to give medical organizations more time to get ready for the transition, the U.S. government has now settled on a deadline of October 1, 2015 to make the change.

Are your patients generally happy to see you, notwithstanding those who are in pain or have anxiety about whatever is bringing them in to see you that day? Successful medical practices can be identified in part by whether they take the time to pay attention to their patients’ wants and needs and whether they will go out of their way to provide the best possible patient experience. With that in mind, here are five things your patients love to see. If they don’t match up with what you’re currently offering at your practice, you might want to make some adjustments and improve patient morale accordingly.

The following excerpt is from an article found on Forbes. It was written by Louis Goodman and Tim Norbeck. Of all of the oppressing new regulations, etc. foisted on physicians and their medical practices today, few capture more angst than the forced implementation of the ICD-10 codes (International Statistical Classification of Diseases) scheduled for October, 2015.

By now, you have already determined that you cannot run your radiology practice to its full potential by relying only on generic medical office software solutions. You know that you need to implement dedicated radiology software in your organization. One of the biggest challenges you face at this point is simply finding the best application to meet your particular practice’s needs. Is the software scalable if you drastically increase your operations? How will a particular radiology application dovetail with your organization’s core processes? For example, your practice may have a mandate to empower patients with a patient portal. The portal will let each patient sign in with an Internet-connected computer and then check things such as the latest X-rays or other diagnostic tests. Will the radiology software you have in mind be equal to the task? Such questions are designed to help you find the best possible application for your organization. To help you with your decision making process, here are three ways to find the best radiology software.