Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) is an expensive, complex, but nonetheless critical element of every healthcare operation. Mismanaged RCM operations can result in higher staff turnover, reduced patient satisfaction, crippled healthcare processes, inaccurate medical billing, mounting debt, damaged reputations, and poor revenue. RCM is difficult to effectively implement. Fortunately, there are modern, 21st-century solutions to the RCM dilemma that enable the healthcare provider to harness the power of technology to disentangle their RCM processes and boost their revenue.

We’re presenting here some easy-to-understand basics on MACRA for 2019. Many more exciting details can be found on www.cms.gov which should definitely be consulted if those details are needed.

Telehealth and telemedicine are making great strides being accepted by health insurance carriers. this will open markets with the variety of multi-state compacts that make nurses, physicians, therapists, and other regulated, licensed health care providers able to practice across state line. The federal government, hoping to improve access and reduce costs, has embraced telemedicine for the VA system and Tricare, the medical insurance for military retirees.

Many familiar objects are starting to become phased out to be substituted with digital versions. For example, we read e-books on our portable devices, listen to digital music instead of purchasing physical recordings, and enjoy streaming videos instead of going to a store to buy a Blu-ray disc. Paper prescriptions signed by the hand of a physician are another example of objects going digital. If you currently rely on paper prescriptions but have some awareness that electronic prescriptions offer some benefits, read on to learn how they can improve your practice and the patient experience.

Extending your brand in the marketplace is the key to bringing more business your way. This applies to all types of companies, including those that are dedicated to providing healthcare services to patients. If your organization is not seeing as many patients as are called for in your business plans, it’s time to focus on the amount and quality of the marketing you are currently doing, with an eye toward making some improvements.

You’re focused on providing the highest quality of care for each patient who comes through the doors of your medical practice, and this leaves you little time to consider how you can expand your brand in the marketplace. However, improving the reach and exposure of your practice with online platforms is essential for increasing your patient pool.

How do new patients find out about your practice? As is the case with any company, you cannot remain stagnant and expect to continue to thrive. Medical practices continuously take in new patients to offset other patients who leave because they have moved out of the area, changed insurance, or simply want to switch to another practice. If you’re not effectively engaging with patients and the community, you’ll want to forge a clear path to create a patient referral program as soon as possible.

Practitioners of the healing arts as well as the various supporting staff members around them work in an environment that is informed by progress made by professionals following the scientific method. Part of the scientific method includes measuring actual data and then forming a plan based on results.

There’s no doubting the growing importance of customer reviews - and healthcare practices and medical providers are not exempt from the trend. This trend is gaining speed partly thanks to the massive use of smartphones, tablets and laptops that enable patients to chime in with their thoughts about doctors and their impression of the rest of the staff and their overall experience.

A patient portal is not the door that people walk through to get inside your medical practice. It is the term given to the electronic portal that you can enable for them thanks to your electronic health record software. Essentially, it is a way for patients to log into their account to check on details of their healthcare and to ask questions of the staff, with information protected by robust security.