You’ve spent an enormous amount of time attaining your position as a medical professional. Besides the years of college training and time spent as in intern as you made your way up the ranks to your current status, you have to constantly keep up with medical journals, attend conferences, and learn about the latest technology and drug protocols. Many physicians have a secret fear that they will become irrelevant, which could lead to a drop in stature and an erosion of self-confidence. With this in mind, here are three tips for physicians who want to stay relevant.

You’ve handpicked a fine staff, and you know that they have the same feelings of loyalty for you that you have for them. It’s important to periodically remind your team how valuable they are to you and your patients. To reinforce the value you place on them, part of your duties should involve reviewing what you can do to help your staff and lighten their burdens. The more you help your staff, the more you can help your patients.

One of the signs of people who are true professionals is that they are seldom satisfied with the state of their business or the development of their abilities, skills, and knowledge. While you strive to maintain a certain level of service and abilities for each staff member, you know that the medical field is constantly evolving. New techniques become available to help us diagnosis and treat patients as well as to measure how well a particular treatment protocol is working. This means that medical organizations are always in a state of development, with team members needing to stay current on discoveries in their field as well as what current industry best practices are in their niche.

As a medical professional, you know that your job will typically be easier when everyone in your practice is fully engaged with patients, people are caught up in their work duties, and they are healthy, enthusiastic, and filled with empathy for those they are taking care of. When times are difficult, however, the medical staff may need to take some time to remember the reasons why they selected this profession in the first place.

The following excerpt is from an article found on Health IT Outcomes. It was written by Christine Kern. While 82% of providers polled express optimism about October’s transition, only 21% believe they are on track for it. A Navicure survey has discovered a curious disconnect regarding ICD-10 preparedness. While 82 percent of respondents reported being optimistic about their readiness for the transition scheduled for October 1, 2015, only 21 percent believe their practices are currently on track to actually meet the deadline.

Like most medical professionals, you surely have chosen this field because of a sincere desire to help people with your special skills, knowledge, and abilities and not because you were interested in organizing records and examining data about patients. This is why it’s not so surprising that some medical organizations are stuck in the past, using antiquated paper-based systems instead of switching to a computerized process. They may be somewhat aware of the existence of software solutions but have decided that they can get by without it for now.

The following excerpt is from an article on EHR Intelligence. It was written by Vera Gruessner. Marilyn Tavenner, Administrator at the Centers for Medicare Medicaid Services (CMS), announced today that the organization recently finished the first week of end-to-end testing for ICD-10 coding.

The following is an excerpt from an article on Healthcare Finance News. It was written by Henry Powderly. It’s Oct. 1 and the ICD-10 diagnostic coding vocabulary is in effect. Now what? According to one expert, that answer depends on how prepared you are and how much money your organization has on hand. “For some, the transition will be relatively seamless,” said Pam Jodock, senior director of health business solutions for HIMSS North America. “Others may experience a loss in productivity as office staff familiarizes themselves with new coding tools and processes.”

The following is an excerpt from an article on Diagnostic Imaging. It was written by Avery Hurt. Many practices are stressing over ICD-10 training — and spending lots of money on computer programs, outside training courses, and thanks to implementation delays, refresher courses. And no wonder. Good training is crucial. The better trained you are by Oct. 1, the less money you are likely to lose because of refused claims. In the stress of getting up to speed in time for the rollout, however, many people are approaching ICD-10 training with a grim determination that would rival that of the most draconian algebra teacher. It doesn't have to be this way.

The computers sitting on the desks at your medical practice can be considered among the most important links holding your business together. Generic business applications or one-size-fits-all medical programs will, by definition, be unsuitable for handling many of the regular events and tasks that your staff has to deal with each day. Medical practices have unique needs when it comes to computer applications. Finding the right software can mean the difference between just getting by or growing so successful that you have to hire more medical professionals to handle the increased work load.