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With the pandemic roaring, many patients took their first foray into telehealth as government regulations were eased to make the technology more accessible. By all indications, a sizable portion of those patients found the experience to be worthwhile. As a result, health care organizations have to become more cognizant of the risks involved with leaning on this form of patient care.
This month’s E-News Exclusive explores the various changes and offers tips on how to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to coding and billing.
— Lee DeOrio, editor |
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Addressing Heightened Risk of Fraud, Waste, and Abuse From Telehealth Expansion
By Gary Call, MD
It took a global pandemic to get here, but telehealth has finally taken off after years of debate surrounding the benefits it might bring. Perhaps it was worth the wait, as it seems that telehealth couldn’t have come at a better time for the health care industry. However, like anything, we find ourselves asking, “How will the good outweigh the bad?”
According to the Physicians Foundation’s 2018 Survey of America’s Physicians, telemedicine use among providers has increased from 18% in 2018 to 48% in 2020, and for good reason. For consumers, particularly those who are immunocompromised or living with chronic conditions and vulnerable groups living in resource-scarce communities, telehealth offers an accessible, safe option to receive care at home when going to the doctor is undesired or not feasible. For providers, being able to remotely triage and monitor patients with COVID-19 symptoms eliminates the risk of staff or other patients contracting the virus, while also maximizing resources during a high-demand period for health care.
Full story » |
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MatrixCare Integrates Speech-to-Text Technology
MatrixCare offers fully integrated secure speech-to-text technology in its Home Health and Hospice and Palliative Care EHR software as a service solution. The embedded voice recognition technology from nVoq turns speech to text in seconds, improving clinical workflow efficiency by providing clinicians and caregivers with an easier means to document their patient narratives and supporting an improved care experience by enabling providers to focus more on their patients than their keyboards. The embedded voice-to-text technology from nVoq is built specifically for mobile caregivers in the home health and hospice industries and is trained with relevant vocabulary and drug dictionaries for a seamless experience, even in instances of complex conditions or care. In an internal analysis of several large hospice organizations using nVoq’s voice-to-text technology, prognostic statement documentation compliance increased by more than 50%. That analysis also revealed an increase in the length of patient notes by 45%, even as the time needed to document those notes decreased by 50%. Learn more »
The Sequoia Project Offers Information Blocking Compliance Boot Camp
The Sequoia Project, a nonprofit dedicated to solving HIT interoperability for the public good, has launched a second edition of its popular information blocking compliance boot camp program to help health care and HIT communities prepare for the April 5, 2021, deadline to comply with the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology’s information blocking and interoperability rules. The program includes a 13-week intensive Information Blocking Compliance Boot Camp and access to an online discussion forum and other expert resources. These resources build on The Sequoia Project’s free online public resource center. The 2021 Information Blocking Compliance Boot Camp consists of virtual meetings from January 20 to April 21 that alternate weekly between 120-minute interactive classroom lecture and discussion and 60-minute open office hours with subject matter experts for student-initiated discussion. Participants also receive access to the exclusive boot camp tool kit. The boot camp is free for full members of The Sequoia Project, and $3,750 per organization for associate members and nonmembers, regardless of number of staff attending. Learn more »
Augmedix Launches Tech-Enabled Service Within Emergency Departments
Augmedix, a provider of remote medical documentation and live clinical support, announces a national rollout of a transformative tech-enabled medical documentation service powered by virtual scribes and created specifically for busy emergency department (ED) environments. Augmedix trains remotely located scribes in emergency medicine documentation to alleviate the administrative burden for clinicians. The virtual scribes use the proprietary Augmedix Notebuilder automation technology to ensure consistent, accurate documentation, which adds value and potential return on investment relating to ancillary billing opportunities unique to the ED. The Augmedix ED scribes support key facets of documentation, real-time alerts, and EHR tasks. This includes tracking and providing reminders for labs, radiology, and EKGs, as well as attaching patient education materials at the end of each encounter. Additionally, Augmedix scribes positively impact clinician workflow and the patient experience by removing barriers between the ED and hospitalists. The ED virtual scribes assist clinicians to optimize workflow by prioritizing documentation requirements for patients being admitted, while still ensuring all ED patient documentation is complete for clinician review and sign-off by the end of their shift. Learn more » |
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Leave No HCC Behind
Just what the coding community needed—added complexity to documenting hierarchical condition categories. Read more »
A Better Line of Defense
By getting onboard with the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Cybersecurity Framework, health care organizations can take a stronger stand against cyber threats. Read more »
Molding Tomorrow’s HIT Professionals
Colleges and universities are in the spotlight as the health care industry searches for data analysts with a soft spot for patient care. Read more »
Telehealth Caretakers
Learn how the HIM department at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center took a lead role in the implementation of the facility’s telehealth concierge service. Read more » |
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Texas Lawmakers Push to Switch Immunization Registry to Opt-Out
Texas is one of four states that has an opt-in immunization registry, which has led to EHR interoperability issues, reports KXAN.
Sharp HealthCare Agrees to Pay $70,000, Take Corrective Action to Settle Potential HIPAA Violation
Following a complaint alleging that Sharp HealthCare failed to provide an individual with electronic access to his medical records, the health care group agreed to take corrective action and pay $70,000 to the Office for Civil Rights, according to HealthLeaders Media. |
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Nuance Announces Acquisition of Saykara
Nuance Communications announces the acquisition of Saykara, a like-minded startup focused on developing a mobile artificial intelligence (AI) assistant to automate clinical documentation for physicians. The acquisition underscores Nuance’s ongoing expansion of market and technical leadership in conversational AI and ambient clinical intelligence solutions that reduce clinician burnout, enhance patient experiences, and improve overall health system financial integrity.
“The complementary technology built by the Saykara team aligns strongly with our technology portfolio and growth strategy as well as the needs of our clients,” says Joe Petro, Nuance executive vice president and chief technology officer. “This acquisition welcomes some familiar and highly respected technology leaders whom I am excited to have join our research and development team, which consists of the best and brightest minds in applying AI and machine learning to health care. With a shared vision, we will continue our aggressive focus on innovation, growth, and on delivering industry-leading AI-powered solutions that meaningfully address the compelling business problems that our health care clients and their clinicians face every day.”
Read more » |
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