Opinion

Choosing the right person to be the HIPAA security officer for your practice can make a big difference in how the staff views compliance.

A security awareness program is a relatively inexpensive way to educate staff members about cybersecurity at your practice.

Are we prepared to meet the healthcare needs of an aging America? The answer, experts agree, is no.

There’s no doubt about it: Physician burnout is real and it affects an alarming number of us across the nation. While physicians focus on their patients, the practice environment is filled with invisible stresses that weigh on physicians and cause burnout.

Medical groups need to spend a lot of money to outfit, maintain and manage health information technology in their practices-more than $32,500 per year in for every single full-time doctor in the practice, according to a recent study.

Industry trade groups and experts are voicing approval of the announcement from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that it would allow providers to choose the pace at which they comply with the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA).

Providers who are still adjusting to the ICD-10 coding transition from five characters to seven have a variety of amenities and advice available to them in the last leg of the grace period.

The question keeps coming up as to whether my nurse practitioner can bill incident-to while counseling patients and bill based on time spent counseling. I get mixed reports on this. What is the answer? Can they bill by time?

Congress is considering chronic care legislation, but don’t expect final action on any proposals until next year when a new Congress and a new president take office, Capitol Hill watchers agree.

I am a gun owner, raised as a hunter in rural Texas, and proficient with all types of civilian firearms.

What payers ditching plans means for your practice-and why finding solutions for handling collections has become vital.

New advances can boost the physician-patient relationship, rather than create barriers.

The coding change hasn’t put a financial hit on most physicians, but that could change as of October 1.

This month, Medical Economics takes a look at the issue of guns in medical practice.

Before selling your practice, bringing on a new partner or investor or entering into a new practice management relationship or joint venture, you should first determine if there are any business or regulatory risks present in your practice, as they could jeopardize your transaction or put a portion of your proceeds at risk.

Employees in any sized healthcare facility should not be allowed to carry guns inside their place of employment.

Allow guns into my practice-and yours? How could you not? If you think your practice is in a gun-free zone, you are wrong.

Karma at its best.

The number of physician practices owned by hospitals has increased 86% over the past 4 years, which also resulted in a 50% rise in the number of physicians employed by hospitals, according to a recent study.

Many doctors have a difficult time with marijuana as medication, and consider doctors who prescribe it as second-class citizens.

While the presidential campaign dominates the news, some doctors view the political process through a unique lens because they, too, are elected officials.

The Hippocratic Oath directs physicians to act in a manner that advances patient well-being. Yet CMS, by offering financial reward for clinical behavior dictated by other considerations, has created a practice environment at odds with this directive.

When it comes to investing in IT and data security, the healthcare field has been known to lag behind other business sectors. That underspending, coupled with the massive shift from paper to digital records in recent years, has put the industry in some crosshairs.

Until we create a system that rewards investment in wellness and healthcare dollars not spent, there is reason to fear that the negative effects of healthcare excesses will continue to be borne by households, businesses, and governments.

We've had so much major medical advances in the first half of the 19th century, but physicians are severely being held back from continuing that success.

Physicians can sometimes be hesitant to begin hosting video visits because they are weary about just how effective the technology can be when treating patients. However, once physicians start using telemedicine, they are often shocked at how versatile video technology can be as an additional tool to administering care.

Analytics are rapidly changing how physicians and health systems approach patient care.

A real-world study confirms the effectiveness and safety of the all-oral combination of sofosbuvir plus ribavirin for treatment of hepatitis C virus GT2 infection.

Completing these crucial tasks before you switch from an old electronic health record system to a new one can help ensure a successful implementation.

More susceptible to community-acquired pneumonia, researchers advise those with celiac disease to get vaccinated.