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Showing posts from May, 2008

Medical Billing and Coding

What is medical billing and coding? This is probably not the first time you have heard of the phrase but what exactly does it mean? What do a medical biller and coder do? Medical billing and coding is essentially a support service designed for physicians who are slumped with endless piles of paperwork or electronic claims. Most patients these days have health insurance providers to pay for their healthcare needs. In order for a physician or the healthcare provider to get paid, they would have to file a claim for reimbursement fees for the services they rendered. This is where medical billing and coding come in. Medical billing and coding helps support physicians, clinics, hospitals, and patients in handling allied health issues. Medical offices, clinics, hospitals, health insurance companies, and many more seek the help of medical billing and coding professionals. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said that medical billing and coding specialists along with health information tech

The Lawsuit Malpractice Medical State Policy

Lawsuit malpractice medical state insurance differs from state to state. Since 2000, the issues of medical liability insurance costs and medical malpractice lawsuits have been prominent on both state and federal legislative calendars. Lawsuit Malpractice Medical State Policies Medical malpractice laws are maintained at a state level; all states must have some laws governing medical liability lawsuits. Most states however have statues of limitation of two years for standard medical malpractice claims. Some states have limits on damage awards whereas, almost all states have eliminated joint and several liabilities in medical malpractice lawsuits and many states have established strict limits on attorney fees and charges. Facts of Lawsuit Malpractice Medical State Practices In 2005, 48 state legislatures responded to federal calls for medical liability reform through the introduction of over 400 bills to address the situation. The solutions ranged from limits on non-economic dam

Arguing the electronic medical record form standardization

The electronic medical record systems found in most hospitals, clinics and healthcare systems are described as stand-alone programs that only operate on their own computer network. Why was it created in such a format? This is because most of the hospitals that operated under these systems were the same ones who funded it. This creates problems for communication with other health institutions. Enter the proposal for electronic medical record form standardization. Late last year, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded contracts to consortiums as part of a project to enable computer technology in helping to create a more efficient system of health care record keeping and information. The project was awarded to four winning groups namely: Accenture, Computer Sciences Corporation, I.B.M., and Northrup Grumman. The main purpose of the yet created system is to link doctor's offices, clinics, healthcare institutions and hospitals in computer networks that use open da

Medical Billing Solutions

With the high demand for medical billing solutions these days, an unprecedented number of companies offering their services in medical billing have cropped up in the healthcare market. At first glance, it seems they all offer the same thing - a solution to your practice management woes or billing problems. But surely, there is a difference in the services they offer and those are what you need to find out if you want medical billing solutions that really fit your needs. When looking for the right medical billing solutions, the most important thing you need to do is to research. Ask around. Go to the Internet and type in "medical billing solutions" in any search engine to gain access to various websites that can give you information on a particular medical billing company. Ask previous clients or former customers and find out what they think about the company or the services offered. Below are some sample questions you can ask about medical billing solutions. Are they knowledg

Pathological Medical Technologists

A lab assistant in the clinical laboratory is also referred as pathological medical technologists. There is an option of a degree of a medical degree, which is essential for a student who wants to become a pathological medical technologist. The main work of these medical technologists is to perform and interpret a wide variety of clinical tests in the pathology. These tests consist of from simple one like checking of the glucose to complex analysis clinical tests. These pathological analyses of clinics are vital for identifying and treating pathological conditions of various diseases. Therefore, these pathological medical technologists perform a significant role by discovering the cause of various diseases like diabetes, and cancer, AIDS and many more. They gather samples of patients for clinical testing. These pathological medical technologists play a vital role in five important sectors like Blood banks, Immunology and Microbiology, Chemistry, Hematology. These pathological technolog

Key Facets of Electronic Health Records Software

The use of electronic health records in hospitals around the US is growing, given the continued penetration of new technology in the health sector. An effective electronic health records system should feature programs that are essential to the needs of a health office. An electronic health records software should have the following capabilities Accessibility Electronic medical records are normally retrieved during predictable times, especially during patient visits. The electronic medical records software should make the data available universally. Upon the parent's permission, the data should also be made available as reference for research or basis for future tests. Comprehensiveness Since care is usually given by different physicians, pharmacists, nurses and other providers, each care giver must be knowledgeable about the practice of others to determine what has been done in the past. Outpatient records should list data, such as medications, allergies, procedures, appointment hi

Tips on Filing a Medical Malpractice Suit

The following article will prove to be quite helpful should you ever find yourself requiring a medical malpractice suit. The basics of medical malpractice are simple: it is effectively any negligent acting on behalf of a medical professional that result in personal injury or death. The burden of proof is on the plaintiff and it is required that the substantiation includes evidence of the deviation from the statutes of the governing medical body so as to demonstrate where in the issue began in terms of the law. Injuries and Medical Malpractice It is important to understand that not every medical injury is a result of medical malpractice. Operations and treatments are not always successful, and a medical malpractice suit is certainly not warranted should your certain surgical procedure not have the desired effect. Doctors and other medical professionals work within the realms of the medical profession and cannot simply work "miracles", so medical malpractice is not the act of n

Occupational Medical Technologists

Occupational medical technologists are required in the branch of occupational therapy, which is an emergent field presently providing some of most worthwhile and gratifying associated health careers. The occupational assists the patients of all ages having limited potentials to launch, enlarge and keep up their potentials to complete their daily functions and tasks. The occupational medical technologists interact with patients personally through their regular therapy sessions. The main emphasis of these technologists is on the fulfill their daily needs containing enhanced standard of life. Occupational therapy gives attention to reorganize disabilities of a patient regarding their physical, mental, social and emotional condition. Normally, the location of these occupational therapist jobs is facilities like nursing care, hospitals and private occupational therapy practices. The job of occupational medical technologist is physically and emotionally demanding. Therefore, it is

Medical Billings and Claims

Medical billings and claims are much more complicated than you think. Often, the job is flossed over by advertisers whose goal is to get as many people to respond as they can only to find that the job is not for them or the competition is far too cutthroat to leave any room for newbies. While this article won't specifically tell you how to overcome the odds posed in the medical billings and claims industry, it does help you answer a few questions you might want to ask first. What does it entail? Medical billings and claims are a broad subject. The responsibility of a professional engaged in medical billings and claims often encompass, for the most part, all billing and accounts receivable management functions of a given health care provision concerned. Of course, you might already know that there are numerous other possible billing arrangements that a doctor or a healthcare professional can have. However, nothing really beats medical billing and claims as far as efficienc

Disinfection For Medical Technologists

Most of the times, the germs are the cause of the diseases. Moreover, they can be infectious and therefore the patient's body too, may become infectious. Therefore, it is harmful for all those, who come in contact, with such a patient. Among them are the medical technologists who perform the tests for the diagnosis. Therefore, special care is needed find the medical technologists during and after the completion of the procedure for the diagnosis. This procedure includes the disinfection of medical technologists themselves and their instruments as well. The disinfection for medical technologists and the instruments are both equally important. Occurrence of Infection: There is many occasions, on which there are chances of infection. The infection can occur when the medical technologists do the diagnosis of the infected samples from the patient. In addition to this, it may also occur when the medical technologists take the sample from the patient. Further, there are two modes of infec

Is a Medical Malpractice Case Easy to Win?

Nothing is Easy Nothing in life, especially a medical malpractice case, is easy. Your entire medical and mental health history, as well as your credibility in all aspects of your life, will come in to question. You may even be subjected to hours of mental health, psychological, and physical stress tests. You may have to describe your problem to scores of doctors, many of who will disagree with your assertion that you have a particular problem. Ask for Help When dealing with professionals regarding your medical malpractice case, you may have difficulty dealing with doctors, lawyers, or other professionals. Ask a friend or loved one if they would accompany you to all visits to the doctor(s), and/or your lawyer. There are several reasons for this, especially if you appoint the person to speak to the professionals for you, if necessary. Several times, there will be questions or issues that you'll forget to mention, or problems that others see (that you might not notice) that

Learn Medical Billing

Medical billing is a complex process that often involves submitting claims to insurance companies in order to receive payment for services rendered by doctors, physicians, internists, nurses, or any other healthcare provider. Most insurance companies also use the same medical billing process, whether they are private companies or government-owned ones (Medicare and Medicaid). Medical billing is often described as the key or the way for a doctor to get compensation for services rendered. By processing insurance claims, medical billers can procure payment from customers through their healthcare insurance plans. It is the medical biller who contacts the insurance company or the clearinghouse and gets them to pay for the insurance claims. The demand for medical billing is quite high, especially these days when medical offices, whether large or small, are experiencing deficits because their billing and accounting lacks streamlining. So if you want to find a job that is in demand and that pa

Acrendo's AI Med: A Top-notch EMR for Cardiology

Various practices in the healthcare industry have embraced electronic medical records given their huge benefits in improving care for patients and boosting efficiencies in the flow of work in health offices. The field of cardiology is among those fields that have utilized the technology, with heart doctors around the world now having immediate access to the data of their patients. Here is one of top rated Electronic medical records software for cardiology: Acrendo's AI Med Cardiology EMR A customizable Practice Management Software and Electronic Medical Record software specially designed for cardiology specialists. Acrendo's AI Med features documents management and imaging, which enables scanning and importing of images to a patient's health record. Recorded images can be transferred to a Tablet PC for editing. Patient scheduling enables the creation of appointments, listing of payments, check balances. This feature supports multiple offices and providers and boasts of a co

Filing Your Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

If you should ever find yourself in the unfortunate position of needing to file a medical malpractice lawsuit, this brief guide can be a starting point in terms of some of the basic information you may need to file the lawsuit. The basic definition of medical malpractice is an act or omission of an act by a medical professional or a health care provider which causes injury to the patient through deviation from the generalized standards or rules of the health care authority. A medical malpractice lawsuit can be filed against doctors, dentists, nurses, and anyone in any branch of the medical field as defined by the legal system code. Claims are sometimes also brought against entire hospitals and medical corporations as the result of "vicarious liability" which, in essence, means the responsibility of the superior for the actions of those working underneath or the subordinates. Simply, vicarious liability would be akin to filing a lawsuit at an entire branch of McDonal

Medical Billing Company

The market for medical billing is huge with lots of opportunities for budding medical billing professionals. However, competition is also cutthroat and more than likely, the medical billing company you are looking into might turn into a fraud or a scam. In America alone, over 2.1 million dollars are being earned by medical billing company. What person in his right mind wouldn't want to take advantage of that? To avoid fraud issues in medical billing company, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the Department of Health and Services of the U.S. has recently issued a notice for the Compliance Program Guidance, targeted towards third-party medical billing company. The program was developed by the OIG in cooperation with, and with input from, the Health Care Financing Administration, the Department of Justice and representatives of various trade associations and health care practice groups. The aim of the compliance program guideline is to combat fraud and abuse in th

Job Oppurtunities For Medical Technologists

Job opportunities for medical technologists are on the rise and it is one of the most favored lines of career opted by both men as well as women. Medical technologists are the appreciated constituents of the health care team in hospitals as well as the administrative fields of doctors. The bachelor's degree program in medical technology consists of courses in biological sciences, microbiology, chemistry, mathematics and statistics. It also includes specialized courses dedicated to developing knowledge ability for use in clinical laboratory. Many medical technologists specialize in areas like management, business and computer applications, which are available as courses of higher study. Vacancy rates are at an all time high due to the increasing number of job opportunities for medical technologists. Medical technologists have the unique opportunity to use their knowledge and skills in many career settings. The vacancy rate for the seven of ten indispensable laboratory positions is 1

There Is Little Chance That You Will Win That Medical Malpractice Law Suit

Out of the every five cases that make it to court, only one medical malpractice law suit comes out ahead. This is pretty bad odds by any standard. This happens because the strength of any medical malpractice law suit depends upon the ability of the medical malpractice attorney to put up the technical and non-technical medical terms in a simple and legible language both for the jury and the judge. It also depends upon the capacity of the medical malpractice attorney to gather the required information to back the case. It takes a lot of effort to prove the merits of a medical malpractice law suit and since it involves a lot of expenses, most of the people prefer to settle for out-of-court offers. It easier for the aggrieved person to accept an apology and a modest sum of compensation money, than spend his/her time and money pursuing justice in the court of law - that may never happen in the end. What It Takes To Improve The Chances To Win Your Medical Malpractice Law Suit The claimant ne

Medical Technologists And Blood Tests

Joining a medical college as an MBBS student is not the single route for entering the medical field. Other options do well to open the doors for you. With the mentionable growth in medical facilities, hospitals, healthcare centers, polyclinics, nursing homes and diagnostic centre, there is not only need of specialist doctors but also for medical experts and technicians in different areas. Medical technologists and blood tests are related, since the main duty of these technologists is to take diagnostic tests in order to suggest treatments. The job profile of a medical technologist includes the work in medical as well as biochemical laboratories. Thus medical technologist and blood test are inseparable. Technologists deal with different equipments and instruments to conduct a range of tests and analysis. Blood banks give these technologist opportunities to work. Modern applied branches of medical technology need skilled and trained medical technologists A general definition of

Medical Billing Collections

The services involved in medical billing collections are as diverse as the scope of the career itself. Although it is sometimes equated with medical coding, medical billing collections is actually a wholly different aspect of the healthcare information field. For one, medical coders concern themselves with choosing the correct diagnostic and procedure codes. On the other hand, medical billing collections professionals are the ones who make decisions which help healthcare providers achieve optimal reimbursements for the services they render to their consumers. The Job Medical billing collections are often described as the key to getting compensation for medical services rendered. Medical billers are even described as the persons to go to if you want to get paid. With the emergence of HMOs, PPOs, and insurance plans today, many doctors, medical offices, clinics, and health centers are seeking the services of medical billing collections professionals to help them streamline thei

Medical Malpractice Attorney in Connecticut

If you are looking for a medical malpractice attorney in Connecticut, you are searching for them because you have been wronged by your physician. A medical malpractice attorney in Connecticut will help you when negligence has occurred with a health care provider, and they violate the standard care that you are owed. A health care provider includes medical doctors, nurses, hospitals, chiropractors, therapists, dentists, nursing homes and anyone else who has a duty to treat a patient. When Can People Seek A Medical Malpractice Lawyer in Connecticut? When the health care provider has an error that results in an injury to you, as a patient, then you can pursue a medical malpractice claim. Most of these injuries come in the form of birth injuries, failures to diagnose a problem, nursing home abuse, prescribing the wrong medicine, failing to provide proper treatment or making mistakes in surgery. These are the most common reasons, but are not the only reasons you can seek to file a

Facing Confidentiality and Electronic Medical Records Concerns

With more and more hospitals employing the electronic medical record as their standard data collection, storage and retrieval system, there are those who are concerned with the risks in the confidentiality and electronic medical records system. The old way of doing things required a lot of paperwork. This meant more office space was allotted for record keeping. This usually meant a filing cabinet with a key as its main security defense against other people. The talk of confidentiality and electronic medical records keeping true to that sense is only a hype, or fluke. The concerns of confidentiality and electronic medical records falling into the wrong hands are grossly exaggerated. To put these concerns on confidentiality and electronic medical records intrusive capability, the software developers have added several security measures to insure that only those who need to know about your information get it and the information that the doctor is reading is really about you: *

Duties Of Medical Technologists

The medical technologists are the people who diagnose the problems in the body of the patient, using some diagnostic method. They analyze the results, and then make proper report using these results. After this, they provide such ready reports to the doctor. Thus, they are helpful to the doctor. They work either in their independent clinics or in the hospitals, or doctor'stick clinics, etc. The duties of medical technologists begin from taking the samples for the analysis. For this, they have to interact well with patients and carefully take the samples. Taking the right sample too, is among the important part of duties of medical technologists. Then the second thing, which comes in the duties of medical technologist, is the correct use of the equipments in the analysis. If they are the imaging technologists, they should handle the settings and the operating procedure of the machines. They should help the patient to sit in the correct position so that; the images taken co

Advantages and Disadvantages of Electronic Health Record Systems

Hospitals across the US are relying less on papers-based documenation of patient records and operation data, thanks to electronic health record systems. Such systems are primarily designed to allow doctors or other health care provider to have direct access to patient data during appointments. Physicians and other health workers will revert to using "sticky notes" if electronic tools are not available. Electronic health record systems are at the heart of any health office that rely on any computerised information network. Different data include imaging reports, clinic results, consultant correspondence, medicine lists and other chart notes. Doctors can easily focus on issuing medical opinion rather than scouring for unavailable data. Advantage of electronic health record systems * Instant access of all patient information for doctors during visits * A wide array of essential functions should be collected, as a single software will unlikely possess all necessary feat

Medical Billing Degrees

Professional medical billing and coding are in very high demand. In fact, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics or BLS states in their report that it is one of the top twenty fastest growing occupations in the healthcare industry. So why is it then that a recent American Hospital Association survey showed that about 18% of billing and coding positions remain unfilled? The problem may lie in lack of qualified candidates. Doctors, physicians, nurses, hospitals, clinics, medical offices, and insurance companies depend on medical billing and coding professionals to manage their practice and handle the complexities that come with insurance claims processing. So knowing this, you can then see how important the job of the medical billing and coding specialist is. It is not a job for those who don't know anything about billing and accounting or insurance. It is not a job for those who have no basic grasp of medical terminologies and coding. It is certainly not a job for th