Full Circle Healthcare

In managing any medical facility or clinic, electronic health records, better known by their initials, EHR, are a vital component to that management. EHRs contain a wide range of information that details a patient's medical history, exams they have taken or need in the future, what medications they are using, and generally offers medical providers and other authorized users with readily available information that they need.Handling such sensitive information in this digital age comes with great responsibility given the likelihood of hackers and viruses. How can providers ensure they are safely using EHRs and complying with SAFER? On an episode of Full Circle Healthcare, host Michelle Dawn Mooney talked with Nicki Anderson, Compliance Director at Medsphere Systems Corporation, on the SAFER guidelines, what they are and the means of ensuring they are met. SAFER is an acronym for Safety Assurance Factors for EHR Resilience which lays out a series of steps that guarantee the safe use of EHR. Mooney and Anderson explored more on SAFER and also talked about …1. Its origins and the most recent updates made since its introduction2. How the guidelines specify access factors based on a user and how that helps mitigate risks3. The three categories of the nine SAFER guidelines and how each work towards safetyAnderson explained how the third category, clinical process guide, works in alerting the EHR user of important information when it comes to identifying patients, and exams they've done that need urgent response. But also how that same beneficial information can pose safety concerns.“Examples of these would be, does your EHR flag abnormal lab results in a distinct way, whether it's bolded or maybe it's in red font, maybe it's circled. Another example would be, does the EHR give you the ability to accurately identify a patient and it may be in the EHR itself, it may be when you print out a wristband or label to be attached to something. Is there enough information on those labels and the wristband to correctly identify the patient? So, all in all I think they really focus on those areas where possible patient risk could be introduced,” said Anderson.Nicki Anderson is the Compliance Director at Medsphere Systems Corporation.

With more people staying and working from home, the pandemic heightened the need for broadband access, especially in underserved communities, such as those located in rural areas. However, this is no new issue for those living there. Could Government programs such as the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) and The Infrastructure and Jobs Act soon provide the access these rural communities need? David Macfarlane, marketing and communications manager with Medsphere, spoke to Full Circle Healthcare about the importance of making inroads with reliable broadband in rural communities and what the future holds.“Internet access, in general, is something very much like water and electricity,” Macfarlane said. “It's become something essential to our everyday lives, and not just so we can access cat videos and questionable content.”When the pandemic hit, doing critical functions of daily life became almost impossible if one did not have good access to reliable broadband internet. And no one felt the impact more, perhaps, than rural communities.While most of the United States does have reliable access to the internet, Macfarlane said about 35% of the population either doesn't have access or has antiquated access such as modem and dial-up. And what did Macfarlane see as the most significant barrier to receiving broadband?“What history tells us about utilities, specifically electricity, is it is expensive to lay all the infrastructure to make it available in rural areas,” Macfarlane said. “Indeed, it is so expensive that companies can't necessarily put the infrastructure in and then make enough money off the sale of the utilities to cover their costs.”Macfarlane, while cautiously optimistic, believes that there is still a long road ahead to making internet accessible for all and additional government funding may be needed to complete the mission.

PDMP and EPCS are two emerging abbreviations essential to curbing the current opioid epidemic. David McFarlane, Marketing Communications Manager with Medsphere, and Host Tyler Kern discussed what they are and their relevance.PDMP, or Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs, are state registries that track opioid administration by pharmacists. PDMPs are not implemented in every state and are not state-standardized. EPCS, or Electronic Prescriptions for Controlled Substances, is when providers send a prescription to a pharmacy and there is an electronic record that can link to the PDMP. Currently, PDMP and EPCS are not federally mandated. Twenty-two states lack one program while six lack either. This will likely soon change, as the government moves to enforce overarching requirements that could prevent addicted individuals from doctor shopping across state lines.A federal mandate would not change pharmacist workflow much if these programs are automated. In fact, implementation would benefit healthcare workers such as physicians. An ER physician might pull up a patient record and observe a history of their prescriptions on the registry to see if anything indicates addiction. McFarlane explained, “It also gives him or her a clear picture of where that patient sitting in front of him or her sits and what their real needs are.” This data is useful but there is no protocol for how to approach it in terms of funneling patients to rehab programs or administering weaning medications. McFarlane stated, “That's something that has to be discussed widely in the country in terms of programs, in terms of protocols for physicians in different hospitals.” As for next steps, McFarlane believes protocol standardization at the state level is achievable if small hospitals receive funding to implement opioid programs and comply with a mandate.Learn more about PDPM and EPCS and get in contact with McFarlane by visiting medsphere.com.

Ransomware is one of the greatest dangers in healthcare IT, with cyberattacks in healthcare rising to 42 percent in 2020. Over the past year and a half, hackers attacked large institutions and smaller organizations with increased intensity. On this episode of Full Circle Healthcare, Host Tyler Kern talked with Thomas Grove, Vice President of Operations at Phoenix Health Systems. They discussed the increase in ransomware attacks and the criminal organizations that deploy these attacks. “Ransomware is increasingly common, and it's expensive,” Grove stated.One-third of healthcare organizations were impacted by ransomware last year, according to research from Sophos. Two-thirds of organizations also expect to be impacted. “I think the other third are deceiving themselves,” Grove said. The cost of a data breach also hit record highs in 2020; the average price of an incident was $4.24 million. One of the major difficulties in staying ahead of ransomware attacks is due to the fact that they are constantly evolving. One of the ways to combat this ever-increasing danger is by having your files backed up, according to Grove. This allows healthcare facilities to restore files. However, new ransomware is more mature than this original model. The new ransomware is silently exists for more extended periods while it gathers data. Grove explained: “When we think of ransomware, we think of ransomware in the classic model, where ransomware gets loaded in your system, it encrypts your files in place. You get contacted by the ransomware itself demanding ransom.”

Over the past year, cybersecurity attacks have occurred at an alarming rate. Due to a combination of employees working from home and the general chaos of the pandemic, hackers took advantage, and there were some high-profile attacks, such as the Colonial pipeline. But why is the healthcare industry particularly vulnerable? Here to give insights on this episode of Full Circle Healthcare is David Macfarlane, Marketing and Communications Manager at Medsphere. He talked with Host Courtney Echerd about what is causing increased cyberattacks and how the healthcare industry can withstand the increase in hacking. “We know the threat is more than significant,” Macfarlane said. “It has really ramped up a lot in recent years.” While it's difficult to put numbers to it, as it's not effectively recorded right now in every single instance, according to Macfarlane. Healthcare organizations don't necessarily want to report a hack because it's terrible PR. But, for the numbers currently recorded, there is a ransomware attack on a business in the United States every eight minutes. But what makes the healthcare industry, in particular, so vulnerable? Old hardware, Macfarlane said. “We've got a situation where about 75 percent of healthcare organizations are operating on hardware that no longer receives patches, so they're not getting their security updates,” Macfarlane said. “That makes healthcare the most vulnerable sector of the economy.”Can Healthcare

There's a strange give and take happening in healthcare, and it has to do with the technology systems organizations use to store and access patient data and more.While many of these legacy systems are astronomically expensive by today's standards, making them obsolete and setting up a clear need for transition, many healthcare organizations are afraid to make such a change for fear of losing the patient data stored within the soon-to-be retired system.In addition to the loss of data, transitions can also just be overly complex, adding another burden to teams already spread thin in the wake of COVID-19 and increasing patient expectations.To outline some strategies for leveraging a straightforward, affordable provider to avoid common pitfalls and move on from overly expensive solutions with no ill effects, host Tyler Kern invited Norman Efroymson, Vice President of Micro-Office Systems, a division of Medsphere, to this episode of Full Circle Healthcare.Micro-Office Systems is a “leading provider of medical data extraction, migration, and integration solutions” that's spent the last three decades delivering cutting-edge medical IT solutions and helping organizations find the best answer to their unique challenges.The company's proven medical data extraction and conversion tools and processes make transitions secure and seamless, handle careful conversion of data from your legacy system, and ensure your practice doesn't miss a beat during a system transition.

Challenges Faced by Rural Hospitals

EHRs are the backbone of healthcare digitization. However, they bring with them a cognitive burden for users. So, how can tech better align with its healthcare user? To discuss the challenges and opportunities, Full Circle Healthcare host Shelby Skrhak spoke with David Macfarlane, Marketing Communications Manager at Medsphere.  

As vaccinations become the dominant part of the pandemic conversation and life reaches a new normal, what are the lingering challenges of those patients who suffered the effects of COVID-19, and what other concerns will exist?

Medical Laboratory testing processes are complex, with test orders continually going through operations. Billing is part of that equation, but it doesn't need to be part of the complexity. Scott Liff, a Healthcare Executive with Medsphere Systems Corporation, provided insights on the world of laboratory testing and the considerations for utilizing an outsourced partner for billing solutions. “When it comes to the billing process,” Liff said, “It's not just about creating a bill for the service you provided and sending it to a payer or a patient. It's that continuum of gathering that information upfront, making sure it's the right information for the right test that's being performed all the way through the lab. Did the lab perform it? Did they perform additional testing? Is there additional information that's added to that? Along that way, all these variables come into it.” If laboratories rely on well-trained and qualified experts to run the test, it makes perfect sense that they'd want that same level of expertise for billing purposes. An outside resource with specialized knowledge in billing practices could provide huge benefits to a laboratory in time and cost-savings. But Liff said there are some factors laboratories should consider when choosing a billing solutions partner. “What information system platform is this outsourced billing organization utilizing to provide this service,” Liff said is the first question a laboratory should ask when researching potential candidates. “Does the outsourced billing company provide similar billing for a lab similar to yours on your platform,” is the second consideration. “The third main area I would take a look at is, does the leadership of that outsourced billing provider have the knowledge and expertise to help you identify and address those many challenges you're going to face with your overall RCM process.”

While almost every area of our day-to-day lives has been affected by COVID-19, the healthcare industry has undoubtedly been changed forever. To gain some insight into how the healthcare system responded to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tyler Kern, host, Full Circle Healthcare, sat down with David Macfarlane, Marketing Communications Manager for Medsphere, to learn more about how the industry has met the challenges of the pandemic head on.

Gone are the days of paper charts and deciphering the scrawl of a physician's handwritten prescription. In the last few decades, the healthcare industry has transitioned to electronic charts and records. With that, IT platforms have developed that allow providers to collaborate in new and proactive ways.In this episode of Full Circle Healthcare, we discuss how an electronic health record system (EHR) has helped improved clinical and business processes at TaraVista Behavioral Health Center.Dr. Michale Krupa, CEO and Founder of TaraVista, takes listeners back in time to when his center was still breaking ground. It was then that Dr. Krupa began vetting EHR companies that could elevate the care of his behavioral health facility.Dr. Krupa was searching for a platform for behavioral health data and traditional medicine inputs to live in one place. He found this in CareVue, a healthcare IT system that not only provides a comprehensive clinical dashboard, but also integrates billing, accounting, health coding, and multi-user access into its framework and function.Even as healthcare has transitioned to telehealth in light of the coronavirus pandemic, CareVue has kept pace, adapting to serve patients and care providers. External coders can work remotely to process charts, along with social workers, physicians, and RNs. Patients can also participate in their own care, viewing their health records offsite.After looking into over 10 different EHR platforms for his behavioral health center, Dr. Krupa is confident and passionate about the success of CareVue. The singularly common format the platform uses has made possible new collaborations and a level of care never seen with paper record systems. The state of the art integration has helped TaraVista make great strides in providing exceptional care with expediency and accuracy.

Every business in every industry is currently experiencing the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Perhaps no sector is experiencing hardships more than healthcare. Not only are hospitals and healthcare professionals on the front lines of battling the pandemic, but the inability to provide elective procedures, and routine healthcare during the crisis has put hospitals and clinics in a devastating economic crunch. David Macfarlane, Marketing Communications Manager at Medsphere, spoke on the crisis and what financial resources are available to help the healthcare industry during this unprecedented time. “Running healthcare as a business during a pandemic is a challenge, because the priority is taking care of people who are the sickest and not doing elective surgeries,” Macfarlane said. To keep these institutions afloat, the U.S. federal government is supplying hospitals with funds to ensure they have sufficient supplies, staffing and everything else they need to weather the pandemic. “Congress has gone through three rounds of funding so far, totaling about $2 trillion, and the Senate just passed a new round of funding,” Macfarlane said. Even with multiple rounds of funding already, Macfarlane expects to see additional allocations to handle future spikes of the virus in areas, especially for those states who opt to reopen their economies before the virus reaches its peak. With the lion's share of public service federal stimulus going toward hospitals, how are smaller clinics and doctor's offices handling the pandemic from a financial standpoint, when their ability to conduct "business as usual" has been put on indefinite hold? “The SBA is going to be funding clinics through two primary programs: the paycheck protection program and an economic industry disaster program,” Macfarlane said. And, while the initial round of the paycheck protection program exhausted its funding in 13 days, Congress has since replenished the program with an additional $320 billion. Because the SBA manages these programs through local banks, Macfarlane recommended clinics ensure they have established a relationship with a local bank and to reach out to them for assistance as needed.

What are the latest advancements in technology that are advancing today's healthcare system's supply chains? Leonard Gutierrez, Project Manager for Medsphere-HealthLine, provided his take on what's driving innovation in supply chain management today. Gutierrez sees data as an essential factor in this equation. As more robust systems operate supply management, the data gathered and analyzed helps guide ordering decisions to save money and ensure the right locations receive the right products when they need them. “Automating supply chain operations in healthcare can be a challenge to this day,” Gutierrez said. Moving processes to cloud-based computing is one advancement that excites Gutierrez. This move towards cloud-based operations frees up hospital resources, so they don't have to manage the back end of the supply-chain system. A cloud-based system removes complexity for hospitals. “It frees up capital expenditures, because healthcare organizations no longer need to maintain and upgrade certain computer equipment and data storage,” Gutierrez said. While people are familiar with package tracking, today's supply chain technologies allow for package tracking from a healthcare's receiving area through department delivery. This type of advancement can save departments money in lost/misplaced packages. And improved technologies also offer ways for large healthcare networks to access inventory across multiple hospitals, better utilize the inventory they have and reduce unnecessary ordering. For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Technological advancements in the healthcare industry can be shockingly effective. They also can exert a significant impact on a hospital's budget. On this episode of Full Circle Healthcare, a Mesphere Systems podcast, David Macfarlane, Marketing Communications Manager for Medsphere Systems, sat down with host Sean Heath to discuss the challenges of adopting the latest and greatest technologies. The initial cost of a new healthcare technology can vary widely, based on the size/scope of the product, Macfarlane said. “If you're looking at the entire range of IT products, specific to healthcare, so, we're talking about an entire healthcare platform. An electronic health record that runs a whole hospital, or a healthcare system, and then you could scale all the way down to a single software product that does something very specific, or a single device that does something very specific," he said. The cost and budgetary impact of technological advances is apparent across the entire industry, explained Macfarlane. “There's a linear relationship between increases in healthcare costs and the introduction of technology into the healthcare environment. When you introduce new technology, costs go up. We haven't managed to bend that curve, at all," he said. Macfarlane also explained that the rapid adoption of healthcare IT systems can decrease the usage by the physicians it was designed to assist. “They found that they sort of made their lives more complicated, not less complicated,” Macfarlane said. “They found that they spend more time now than they used to, entering data and a lot of hospitals have actually hired people to do that for physicians. So, there's still a lot of maturity (for these systems) to achieve.”