Merging IT and Clinical Engineering

The convergence of information technology systems with clinic engineering has the potential to increase efficiency and decrease lag-time between medical technologies that are already part of an EMR network.

Clinical engineering is a division of biomedical engineering that deals with the implementation of medical technology and the optimization of healthcare delivery.

The fusion between the knowledge of clinical engineering and healthcare IT, along with the other related and associated management processes, such as EMR software, would allow for new models of care delivery beyond the current limitations of healthcare delivery. In Conference News in Health Imaging, Vi Shaffer, research vice president at Gartner Inc., a technology research company, is reported to believe that the convergence will bring about advancements in the hospital network, ambulances, the ER, and it may even result in the a substantial expansion of telemedicine.

Telemedicine is the delivery of clinical health care through telecommunication and information technologies remotely.

Shaffer also makes note that planning and technical support is extremely necessary for physicians to come together in order to learn the new technologies and have collaborative relationships and environments. Additionally, health IT certification training is important for staff and technicians responsible for planning, selecting, implementing, and managing electronic health records and other health information technology.

Reduce Energy Consumption with Balancing Valves

A principle focus around the world right now is how to be environmentally conscious, conserve natural resources, and build sustainable, low impact symptoms. While this is a global issue and a problem that needs to be resolved, there are many things that we can do in our own homes and buildings that go a long way.

Main culprits of inefficient resources consumption are our heating and cooling systems. Automatic balance valve systems are very useful tool that can help reduce wasted consumption and increase overall efficiency by making a few simple changes to your heating and cooling system. Considering that the costs of heating and water use are increasingly on the rise, it is becomes more practical and economic to invest on ways to save on consumption.

Larger building, such as schools, shopping malls, government buildings, and factories, need to have balancing valves that are automatic. Manual balances valves are more appropriate for smaller buildings or houses.

Before beginning your energy reduction plans, it is important to determine if your system needs balancing. It is important to note that having equal temperature throughout the system may not necessary mean that it is balanced. How large the space is, how often doors are opened and shut, and how well insulated the room is all are essential factors to take into account when setting up a balancing system.

When measuring the temperature of central heating pipes or when measuring the temperature difference between the two ends of pipe, find an area that is not painted, as paint can act an insulator and prevent you from getting an accurate reading. If your pipes are made of plastic you should find metal joints or fittings to measure the temperature. Be sure to measure the temperate near the boiler or a radiation system.

For more information of balancing systems visit Flo-Pac valves and venturi flow meter supplier homepage.

What Are the Benefits of Using a Revenue Cycle Management Service?

When there just don’t seem to be enough hours in a work day, tackling all tasks on the agenda can be a hard feat to accomplish. When dealing with patients face-to-face in a health care provider setting, the tasks that don’t involve in-person contact understandably get pushed to the back burner. Indeed, the patients should come first, but the accounting and billing is what keeps your practice afloat. If you find that your staff has a hard time staying on top of the insurance verification and billing flow, a healthcare revenue cycle management service is a solution to take care of all your billing and revenue management needs, leaving your staff free to make patients the number one priority.

What does a Revenue Cycle Management Service do?

An outsourced revenue cycle management service handles all the steps involved in revenue management – from patient registration, to verification, to claims and billing. After patient registration, the management service verifies the insurance information or checks patients’ eligibility for Medicaid or Medicare services. Claims are electronically submitted after the charge posting of the superbills. Medical accounts receivable is also managed by the revenue cycle management service, effectively reducing the amount of time the practice waits for payment. A good revenue management service will gladly create a customized management program that works best for your individual needs.

How Does It Benefit the Practice?

Employing an outsourced revenue cycle management service to handle your billing and accounts receivables is a cost-effective way to distribute office manpower. The knowledgeable and experienced healthcare revenue cycle management solution staff relieves that burden of having to keep up with the latest coding and billing standards and protocols. This, in turn, greatly reduces the probability of claims denials. Specially trained in HIPAA and state collections laws, revenue cycle management services work with insurance providers and patients to confidently ascertain the receipt of all money owed by patients and their insurance companies to your practice.

Hospitals Achieve EHR Meaningful Use, Reports Suvery

A recent study conducted on the EMR implementation rate in U.S. hospitals reveals the most current information on the U.S. hospital’s electronic medical record systems adoption process and the plans and strategies for the near future.

The survey was sponsored by the Optum Institute for Sustainable Health (the Optum Institute) as part of their goals to increase the quality and service of health care systems. They examined 301 U.S. hospitals and their state of progress in moving towards electronic and digital medical care, their current use of health information technology, and their plans for expansion.

What they found was that almost nine out of ten hospitals or 87 percent are currently using EMR software and systems. This is significantly higher than what they found in 2011. Additional, seventy percent reported that they have met the meaningful use criteria and seventy five percent reports that they plan to meet meaningful use criteria 2 by 2014.

According to an article published in Enhanced Online News, Simon Stevens, chairman of the Optum Institute reports that while hospitals are achieving the EHR meaningful use criteria, “most U.S. hospitals are still some way off from being fully ready to play their part in managing population health and its related financial risk”.