Information Technology for the Practicing Physician

Description

As health care moves from an inpatient to an outpatient delivery system, physician practice management will become more complex and accountable. To manage this change, physician practices are increasingly relying on information technology. This book follows both a patient and an employee through a physician visit, highlighting what, where, and how technology is utilized. The first section, "Utilizing Technology to Arrange a Physician Visit," provides information and examples of technology utilized prior to the patient visit, and includes examples of physicians who utilize email and Web sites to attract patients, electronic scheduling systems to decrease wait time, and registration systems which can verify insurance information. The second section, "Utilizing Technology to Enhance the Physican Visit," demonstrates how technology is utilized when the patient is in treatment and/or follow-up care. Focusing on electronic medical records, electronic referral systems, billing and collection systems, and follow-up patient education and discharge information, it portrays the "future physician office visit." The third section, "Utilizing Technology to Enhance Physician Practice Operations," focuses on the physician practice manager's daily operations and how technology can achieve efficacy. The examples and case studies provided demonstrate a more timely, efficient mode of delivering quality patient care. This is a "how-to" manual for implementing practice management solutions, and will appeal to Physicians, Practice Managers, Information Technology Specialists, Allied Health Professionals, students and researchers. Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Physician Practice Management: Into the Technology Age....Pages 3-21 Workflow in the Primary Care Physician’s Office: A Study of Five Practices....Pages 23-34 Workflow Concepts: The Challenges of Managing Healthcare Business Processes....Pages 35-37 Workflow and Usability....Pages 38-44 Interviewing Patients with the Aid of a Computer....Pages 46-72 Internet-Based Registration....Pages 73-77 Front Matter....Pages 79-79 Clinical Documentation That Improves Patient Care (or Tips for Avoiding Potholes in the Road to the Electronic Medical Record)....Pages 82-93 Selecting and Installing an EMR: HPHC’s Successful Implementation....Pages 94-103 The Ambulatory EMR....Pages 104-109 EMR Reduces Costs and Protects Revenues....Pages 110-112 Patient Acceptance of Computerized Progress Note Documentation....Pages 114-117 Key Characteristics of an Electronic Prescription Writer....Pages 118-126 Clinical Software for Strengthening the Physician-Patient Relationship....Pages 128-140 Computer-Based Patient Education: The X-Plain TM Experience....Pages 141-144 E-Consultation and Education: Medicine Now....Pages 145-150 The Health Network....Pages 151-155 Front Matter....Pages 157-157 Billing for What Your Practice Deserves....Pages 160-169 Duke University Medical Center....Pages 170-171 St. Bernard’s Finance System....Pages 172-172 Credentialing Physicians....Pages 173-187 Front Matter....Pages 157-157 Using Web Technology to Manage Care, Enhance Patient Experiences, and Improve Outcomes....Pages 189-202 Implementation of IDX LASTWORD at Mercy Healthcare Sacramento....Pages 203-205 Front Matter....Pages 207-207 Implementing an Automated Clinical Messaging System....Pages 210-215 EMRx Implementation at MedClinic of Sacramento....Pages 216-218 PhyCor of Corsicana....Pages 219-224 A Rapidly Evolving Definition of Telemedicine....Pages 226-226 Introduction to Telemedicine....Pages 227-233 Medical Applications and Benefits....Pages 234-245 State of Security Features for Medical Information....Pages 247-253 Establishing Information Security Policies....Pages 254-266