How to find joy in medicine, one day at a time -- FPM
A Grand Rapids, Mich., physician discusses what her team does every day to remember why they're in medicine.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/joyful_medicine.html
High-maintenance patients: protecting yourself and your practice -- FPM
Every physician has a patient or two (or more) who make frequent and unreasonable demands for treatment, tests, or referrals, treat staff poorly, and drain the physician’s time and energy. Rather than allow these patients’ bad behavior to affect yours, follow this simple advice.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/high_maintenance.html
How to avoid payment denials on two common diagnostic tests -- FPM
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is advising physician practices on how to avoid billing errors for two common diagnostic tests.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/diagnostic_test_denials.html
Three tips for better risk-adjustment coding -- FPM
Your payment is increasingly tied to the severity of your patients’ conditions. These three guidelines will help you make sure you’re using the codes that best reflect their level of risk.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/risk_adjustment.html
How to calculate the value of team documentation -- FPM
Having a medical assistant or nurse handle the paperwork related to patient visits can help you be more efficient and increase revenue. Here’s how to calculate the value.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/team_documentation_savings.html
Tools for Better Dementia Care -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - Quality measures and clinical tools can bring focus and clarity to caring for patients with cognitive impairment and supporting their caregivers.
Family Practice Management : Articles
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p11.html
The 2019 Medicare Documentation, Coding, and Payment Update -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - This year’s changes include some welcome documentation relief, new codes for portal and telephone encounters, and much more.
Family Practice Management : Articles
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p23.html
Using Empowered CMAs and Nursing Staff to Improve Team-based Care -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - Highly trained workers can perform more visit-related tasks, boosting care quality and reducing physician burnout.
Family Practice Management : Articles
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p17.html
Coding & Documentation - Jan-Feb 2019 -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - Prescription drug management and E/M code selection | Review of systems: How many systems are too many? | Documenting exams by medical students | Coding for removal of skin lesions: biopsy or no?
Family Practice Management : Coding & Documentation
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p30.html
Protecting Adolescent Patient Privacy: Four Key Questions -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - When an adolescent patient requests confidential services, here’s what you need to know about their rights and your responsibilities.
Family Practice Management : Articles
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p7.html
High-Maintenance Patients -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - Don't let their bad behavior make you a bad doctor.
Family Practice Management : The Last Word
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p36.html
Thank You, FPM Peer Reviewers (2018) -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - We would like to thank the following peer reviewers for their valuable contributions to FPM during 2018.
Family Practice Management : From the Editor
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p6.html
Practice Pearls - Jan-Feb 2019 -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - Simplify the checkout process | Ensure your safety during patient visits | Keep your empathy for difficult patients
Family Practice Management : Practice Pearls
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p32.html
Changes of Note for the New Year -- FPM
Feb 1, 2019 - Coding updates are just the tip of the iceberg as we begin 2019.
Family Practice Management : From the Editor
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2019/0100/p4.html
Communication checkup: How many of these skills do you practice? -- FPM
Good communication is the bedrock of good care. In the busyness of day-to-day practice, don’t neglect these seven basic skills.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/communication_checkup.html
The No. 1 question about team documentation -- FPM
To ease physicians’ administrative burdens, many practices are adopting team documentation, which involves increasing the MA-to-physician ratio and delegating more tasks to MAs. How do you convince your practice to try it?
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/team_documentation_question.html
Teen privacy: four rules -- FPM
When an adolescent patient requests confidential services, balancing the patient’s rights with the parent’s rights can be complicated. Keep these rules in mind.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/teen_privacy.html
UHC moves from denial to downcoding of E/M claims -- FPM
Physicians and their coding staff need to be aware of a change in how United Healthcare approaches and pays claims with problematic documentation.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/UHC_downcoding.html
Seven tips for encouraging your patients to exercise -- FPM
These seven steps can help you develop personalized physical activity plans for your patients.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/exercise_prescriptions.html
How to determine what's really urgent -- FPM
Three questions to help you determine if a task truly needs your immediate attention and response or can be delayed or even delegated elsewhere.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/time_management.html
A tool to smooth out your checkout process -- FPM
A New Mexico family physician uses checkout sheets to highlight what needs to happen before a patient leaves the office.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/checkout_process.html
More than half of Medicare claims use new ID cards -- FPM
Physicians are showing early success using the new identification cards that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services supplied to Medicare beneficiaries over the last year.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/Medicare_claims_new_MBI.html
Four apps to help patients better manage anxiety and depression -- FPM
Here are four mobile apps to help patients better manage anxiety and depression.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/mental_health_apps.html
Tasks your nurse could be doing to boost practice productivity -- FPM
How to expand the roles of your care team registered nurses to help the practice serve more patients and increase revenue.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/team_care_RNs.html
Six tips for a better CV -- FPM
Whether you are looking for your first job out of residency or making a career change, getting your curriculum vitae noticed by potential employers is your goal.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/curriculum_vitae.html
Ring in the New Year by submitting your 2018 MIPS data -- FPM
CMS has officially opened the data submission period for MIPS eligible clinicians who participated in Year 2 (2018) of the Quality Payment Program.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/How_to_submit_2018_MIPS_data.html
How to structure the patient visit for better communication -- FPM
Patient visits tend to go better if you and your patient are on the same page. To accomplish this, try structuring your patient visits to start with a brief moment of collaborative agenda-setting.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/visit_structure.html
EHRs occupy 24 percent of doctors’ time, says survey -- FPM
Family physicians spend 51 hours in practice each week, with 24 percent of that time spent interacting with the electronic health record (EHR). What can physicians do to make their EHR work less frustrating?
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/ehr_time_spent.html
Four mistakes to avoid when talking with patients about risk -- FPM
Helping patients understand their risk of developing a certain disease or the risks associated with a screening test can be complicated. Don’t make these four mistakes.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/risk_communication_mistakes.html
New Medicare card lookup tool gets update -- FPM
Even if your Medicare patients haven't yet received their new ID cards, you can lookup their beneficiary identifier online.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/New_Medicare_card_tool_update.html
Five ways to avoid problems with patient satisfaction scores -- FPM
Patient satisfaction scores are being used to grade physician performance and even dictate salary. Here are ways to make sure the scores are correctly generated and used.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/patient_satisfaction_scores.html
Coming soon: Medicare payment for virtual encounters -- FPM
Among the new codes going into effect in 2019 are several that reimburse physicians for various types of virtual encounters.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/Medicare_coding_virtual_encounters.html
Help patients remember to get their flu shot -- FPM
Here's a method for helping your patients remember to get a flu shot in case they forget or don't know you have immunizations available.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/flu_shot_reminders.html
Johnston Memorial Hospital wins 2018 FPM Award for Practice Improvement -- FPM
The family medicine residency program and family physician-led hospitalist team at Johnston Memorial Hospital in Abingdon, Va., have won this year’s FPM Award for Practice Improvement.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/Johnston_Memorial_2018_Practice_Improvement.html
How to check if you are MIPS-eligible in 2018 -- FPM
CMS has taken a second look at whether physicians are eligible for MIPS in 2018. Find out if you have to report - and if your 2020 payments are at risk.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/2018_MIPS_eligibility_status.html
Violence in the office: six questions to help you prepare -- FPM
To prepare for potential violent incidents, every practice should develop an Emergency Operations Plan that answers these questions.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/violent_patient_encounter.html
How to properly code for a pre-op examination -- FPM
Family physicians are often asked to preform pre-surgical evaluations for patients undergoing procedures. This requires selecting the correct codes.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/coding_preop_exams.html
Two mobile apps to help patients lose weight -- FPM
To supplement your normal advice to patients about healthy eating and exercise, you can also recommend these two mobile apps to help patients gain more control.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/mobile_apps_lose_weight.html
Six Mobile Apps to Make Prescribing Easier -- FPM
Dec 1, 2018 - These apps can help you more effectively make medication decisions on the go.
Family Practice Management : SPPACES: App Reviews
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2018/1100/p11.html
Coding & Documentation - Nov-Dec 2018 -- FPM
Dec 1, 2018 - When the chief complaint is medication refill | 99221 for second hospital encounter? | Staph infection of a wound
Family Practice Management : Coding & Documentation
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2018/1100/p32.html
Five Ways to Communicate Risks So That Patients Understand -- FPM
Dec 1, 2018 - When discussing a patient’s risk of developing a disease or the risks associated with a screening test, these simple techniques can ensure clarity.
Family Practice Management : Articles
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2018/1100/p28.html
How to Prepare for and Survive a Violent Patient Encounter -- FPM
Dec 1, 2018 - When the unthinkable happens, having a plan that you have practiced regularly can make all the difference.
Family Practice Management : Articles
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2018/1100/p5.html
What Makes a Doctor Truly Great -- FPM
Dec 1, 2018 - This one skill separates the good from the great.
Family Practice Management : The Last Word
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2018/1100/p40.html
Preparations for Treating Opioid Use Disorder in the Office -- FPM
Dec 1, 2018 - Use this guide to plan for offering medication-assisted treatment with buprenorphine.
Family Practice Management : Articles
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2018/1100/p21.html
Practice Pearls - Nov-Dec 2018 -- FPM
Dec 1, 2018 - Know your RVUs | Set antibiotic expectations before a sore throat exam | Use a white board to track high-risk patients
Family Practice Management : Practice Pearls
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2018/1100/p34.html
Communicating Risks: Let’s Talk Numeracy -- FPM
Dec 1, 2018 - Understanding numeracy will make your risk conversations with patients more effective.
Family Practice Management : From the Editor
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2018/1100/p4.html
Helping compare Medicare costs and copayments gets easier -- FPM
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has launched a new online tool that allows consumers to compare Medicare payments and copayments for certain procedures that are performed in both hospital outpatient departments and ambulatory surgical centers.
Family Practice Management : Getting Paid : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/gettingpaid/entry/procedure_price_lookup.html
How to say no to inappropriate patient requests -- FPM
Saying no to these requests while preserving the patient relationship takes skill, but three tips can help.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/inappropriate_requests.html
12 ways to work smarter, not harder in practice -- FPM
A primary care physician shares 12 strategies -- rooted in the principle of working smarter, not harder -- that transformed her practice.
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/working_smarter.html
The difference between a good doctor and a great doctor -- FPM
Yes, clinical knowledge, procedural expertise, and bedside manner are important. But what one skill differentiates a good doctor from a truly great doctor?
Family Practice Management : Quick Tips : FPM Home
https://www.aafp.org/journals/fpm/blogs/inpractice/entry/curiosity.html