Rheumatologists may lag behind other specialties when it comes to progressive use of imaging, according to an article on Rheumatology News. However, there are some signs of progress. Abhijit Chaudhari, Ph.D., won this year’s “Image of the Year” contest at the American College of Rheumatology’s annual scientific meeting.

Dr. Chaudhari won the contest for his innovative use of combined PET-CT images of finger joints from patients afflicted with psoriatic arthritis. His group built a special piece of hardware that is able to scan extremities and produce three-dimensional positron emission tomography (PET) fused with a 3D anatomical CT image. His practice uses the machine to assess metabolic activity in RA, PsA, and OA of the hand.

How has your practice integrated digital imaging into your care plan? A few of the offices we speak with have in-house digital x-rays, MRI, or ultrasound machines. Others, however, prefer to refer their patients to the local hospital for imaging studies.

There are many advantages to performing image studies in-house. First and foremost, the image machines act as a revenue center for your practice. Second, electronic health records (EHR) allows many possibilities for direct integration with digital images. Integration can save you time in diagnosing your patient and producing the requisite documentation.

We would love to hear how your practice uses digital imaging. Please let us know if you have questions concerning digital imaging and EHR integration. Please visit our website for more information at http://www.xlemr.com.

Although we live in uncertain times, one thing is certain: Medical practices have a lot of changes coming their way. Meaningful use, ICD-10, and HIPAA 5010 will change the medical landscape. Each of them are important, but HIPAA 5010 requires your immediate attention. Is your practice ready to make the transition?

HIPAA 5010 is the new billing information standard that will replace 4010. It is necessary because 4010 does not support ICD-10, which will be required in 2013. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) requires health plans, health clearinghouses, and healthcare providers to switch over to 5010 on January 1, 2012.

5010 requires different data elements than 4010, so the transition will not be automatic. For instance, 5010 requires a physical address for the place of service. For more specific requirements, please see the official CMS educational resources page.

Practices should check with their billing service or software vendor to make sure they are ready for the transition. If your practice is not ready, it could result in CMS rejecting your claims and lead to a loss of revenue. Next, work with insurance companies to test 5010 claims submission. If there are issues, you do not want to find out after January 1st.

If you find out your billing software is not 5010 ready, you will need to upgrade or acquire new software as soon as possible. We can recommend a variety of billing software solutions to fit your practice. Please let us know if you would like any additional information about the 5010 conversion.

Tablet computers have become very popular over the last few years. You may be ready for a new computer, and perhaps you have thought of purchasing a tablet instead of a traditional laptop computer. How do you decide which model is right for you? Determine which is best by asking yourself how you plan to use the device.

Many of our clients have asked us if our EHR software will run on tablet PCs. For now, the answer is no. Our development team has played around with a free EHR system for the iPad. The first thing they noticed is that it was difficult for them to even enter the wireless encryption key. Experimenting further, they found that the typical data entry required in a medical setting was cumbersome and slow on a tablet.

Does this mean that tablet PCs are useless, or unsuited to the medical industry? No. Most IT experts say tablets are great for consuming data (i.e. passively looking at images, reading text, or watching videos). Many providers love to use tablet PCs to review X-rays, ultrasounds, or other digital images with their patients. Tablets are also great for reviewing charts and notes on the go.

What about the casual user? Casual users should apply the same principles. Leisure activities, like watching videos, playing games, or browsing Facebook work well on tablets. More complex tasks, such as writing reports, working with spreadsheets, or anything requiring complex data entry are best left to traditional laptops.

If you are contemplating a new computer, don’t limit yourself to laptops or tablets. There are many different types of computers suited to home and office use. Check out our hardware page for a more detailed discussion of computers and their price points. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions.