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EMR/EHR FAQ's:
Will using Electronic Medical Records (EMR) really help me in my office or is it all just industry hype?
In recent years it has become clear that EMR systems will become the way of the future. Case studies have found that proper implementation of an EMR system can greatly increase the quality of patient care. The question has changed from 'Do I need an EMR system?', to 'When will I adopt an EMR system?'. You cannot open a medical journal these days without seeing an article on the benefits of EMR systems. If you need more information on how an EMR system can help improve patient care, please Contact Us and we will be happy to answer your questions.
I'm interested in trying EMR software in my office but am concerned that I don't know how to use computers well enough in order to be successful. Can a physician with less than perfect computer skills successfully use an EMR?
Any physician can learn to successfully use EMR software provided they are willing to put in the time it takes to learn how to use the system. Obviously a physician that is computer savoy prior to implementing an EMR will have a much shorter learning curve, but even physicians with less than perfect computer skills can use EMR software if they have an interest and a willingness to learn the software.
Why are so few physicians currently using EMR software in their offices? Why do I always hear and read about doctors wasting a lot of time and money on EMR implementations that fail?
In the mid to late 1990's, the world saw the beginning of the age of personal computers. Sometimes it is hard to believe that Windows 98 came out nearly ten years ago (and is still being used in some places)! The age of personal computers brought about the beginning of the EMR software. The last 3 years have seen a great increase in EMR implementation nationwide. We contribute this to many factors including technological advancements, government incentives, and an overall maturity of EMR software.
Sometimes a physician might see an EMR as a panacea; a physician believes that the EMR system will allow him to immediately see more patients per day, spend less time in the office, etc. With a clear understanding up front that there will be a period of learning involved, the EMR implementation will go much more smoothly and the physician will not have an unexpected surprise. Please Contact Us and we would be happy to discuss EMR Implementation with you.
What is the difference between EMR and EHR?
The EMR is the legal record created in hospitals and ambulatory environments that is the source of data for the EHR. The EHR represents the ability to easily share medical information among stakeholders and to have a patient's information follow him or her through the various modalities of care engaged by that individual. Stakeholders are composed of patients/consumers, healthcare providers, employers, and/or payers & insurers, including the government.
Electronic Medical Record
An application environment composed of the clinical data repository, clinical decision support, controlled medical vocabulary, order entry, computerized provider order entry, pharmacy, and clinical documentation applications. This environment supports the patient's electronic medical record across inpatient and outpatient environments, and is used by healthcare practitioners to document, monitor, and manage health care delivery within a care delivery organization (CDO). The data in the EMR is the legal record of what happened to the patient during their encounter at the CDO and is owned by the CDO.
Electronic Health Record
A subset of each care delivery organization's EMR, presently assumed to be summaries like ASTMs Continuity of Care Record (CCR) or HL7s Continuity of Care Document (CCD), is owned by the patient and has patient input and access that spans episodes of care across multiple CDOs within a community, region, or state (or in some countries, the entire country). The EHR in the US will ride on the proposed National Health Information Network (NHIN).
Medical Billing FAQ's:
What are the benefits of outsourcing your billing?
The most important benefit is that it allows you to focus on your core competencies as a healthcare provider. Outsourcing your medical billing will maximize your practice revenue while at the same time allowing physicians to focus on the most important aspect of their job: providing top quality healthcare for patients. Outsourscing your medical billing will also save you from administrative headaches. You will save money and operational time as well. Your nagging, detailed biilling issues will be addressed by us as well. It is estimated that 30% of insurance claims are on hold, denied, or lost, costing you $5-$7.00/claim. We work to resolve this issue for our clients. Outsource your medical billing to our company, and save money on:
- Staff Training
- Software/Clearinghouse Licensing Fees
- Monthly Support Fees On Software/Hardware Maintenance
- Postage and Supplies (Paper, Envelopes, HCFA's, Ink, etc.)
- Excessive Telephone Charges Due To Insurance Company Follow-Ups
- Productivity Hours Lost During Follow-Up Time
- Employee Sick Time, Personal Time, & Vacation Time, Which Typically Incurs 30% Of Your Costs
What is it that AHI does that is different than my in house billing department? Why do you think you can be more successful at collecting my A/R?
AHI has staff focused on billing and collections and billing and collections only. We have two major advantages over your in-house billing department; our focus and our procedures. In working with healthcare providers, we see how difficult it is to retain good qualified staff to process payments and follow-up on unpaid and denied claims. AHI's staff is highly qualified and has many years of experience regarding insurance billing and denials. We create maximum reimbursement through our reporting and follow up of aged/denied claims. We are highly qualified in electronic billing procedures and have access to all pertinent billing and coding resources. Our billing and collections staff at AHI is constantly seeking and finding new and innovative ways to maximize our client's overall reimbursement.
Would I lose control if I outsource my billing?
No, you would not lose control. Our service is designed to provide you with detailed billing, A/R reports and analysis to ensure that you have more information on where your outstanding money is than your current system provides.
How will I know if you are doing a good job?
We can sit down with the physicians/office managers and selected staff monthly to review the monthly reports. These provide an excellent picture of the practice's billings and collections. The reports include an aged accounts receivable summary, detailed practice productivity and insurance statistics. Custom reports are available for those practices that require them.
How does this reduce my administrative headaches?
You no longer have to worry about a billing office staff. We are responsible for hiring, training and supervision. You don't have to provide office space and storage for the billing office. You don't have to worry about the computer or software. We take care of all those details including patient inquires. All you need is a simple Internet connection in your office to use for patient lookup and to generate charge tickets.
Is it smart to let my billing go out to another company?
Industry experts agree that it can be extremely good business to concentrate on your core competencies, like providing quality medical care, and intelligently "outsource" your ancillary functions, like billing. Our physician oriented professional billing staff has many years of experience in the medical billing industry. It is in our best interests to maximize our client's revenue and profits as our fees are based on revenue collected.
Why should I spend all that money on a billing service when I can do it cheaper in-house?
Hiring and training new staff, employee benefits, vacation/sick leave, and staff turnover are just a few factors increasing the costs of managing an efficient in-house billing program. Added to the operational overhead of day to day billing, software/hardware maintenance, clearinghouse fees, postage, and so on, the list of expenditures for practices is endless. AHI can and will show the cost savings to each potential client by comparing what the provider pays for its billing staff in wages, taxes, 401K, Disability, Healthcare and Dental benefits, and Paid time off to what AHI will charge as our billing fee.
How much do your services cost?
Our fees vary depending on your specialty and practice size and whether or not you scan your documents. No matter which solution you choose, you will almost surely experience significant savings, and our efficient processing model with overnight services will quite likely result in an increase in your overall collections.
How does your service work?
All you need to do is send us your work, either by scanning and uploading it to us, or by mailing it, or by having us pick it up. We take the information and create claims to be sent to insurance payees. This way you still have control of everything. The checks and payments still go directly to you. We get the copies. All PHI is stored under HIPAA guidelines. Each month we generate an invoice for our services. Detailed reports are included with the invoice to show a breakdown of collections received for each billing cycle. If you are currently using a PMS for billing, we can adopt and use your existing PMS through HIPAA compliant secure connection.
Can data from my existing software be transferred and used?
This depends on how your existing software handles data exports. If your software can export all its data to an electronic format, we may be able to convert it into our formats at a small additional cost to you. If this cannot happen, but your existing software can print reports of patient demographics and Receivables, we can manually enter it into our database. Please call us to discuss your particular situation.
What specialties do you support?
We support all specialties.
How do claims get submitted?
We electronically submit all clean claims daily. We mail claims daily to insurance companies that do not yet accept electronic submissions. We monitor all electronic submission reports for denials and eligibility issues, and take necessary action.
Are you HIPAA compliant?
Yes. We also keep track of all new code and regulatory changes and automatically update the software.
How do I get started?
Please give us a call at our toll free number (877) 777-7686 or simply Contact Us.