|
FootZine,
Volume 6 |
|
|
|
|
|
From the first issue of FootZine, I have had the good fortune
to receive support, encouragement, articles and advice. While
it was my wish to have an independent publication, like everyone
else, I need the occasional "sounding board".
With the creation of the FootZine Advisory Board, I can officially
acknowledge some trusted and respected contributors. Ten individuals have graciously agreed to serve in this capacity, including podiatric assistants, podiatrists, and a technical and business expert. All are exceptional people, and have a variety of experience and insights that I feel will help me to bring you the best available information and ideas. You'll find the FootZine Advisory Board listed at http://www.footzine.com/FZ_1.htm Many thanks to Alison, John, Lynn, Marlene, Deb, Ann, Hal, Ray, Heather and Tom!! ~ Gayle
*_* Letters
*_*
From: Camillare: Sharing and Learning Dear Gayle, Yes, I would like your news letters sent to my e-mail address. I would also like some tips on being a successful medical assistant to help the doctor that I am working for right now. If you can also send me some tips on how to memorize the bones of the foot and maybe some addresses on other medical assistants that I can talk to and info on some seminars that would be greatly appreciated. I am looking forward to hearing from you and getting to know you better. Thank you, Camilla footdrinfo@grayce.net Marble Falls, TX *_* Editor's Note *_* There have been many successful study groups started in this way over the years. Please feel free to contact Camilla if you're close to Marble Falls. I would welcome letters from other areas where you may want to get a group together. ~ Gayle *_* *_* *_* From: Sharon Hockinson re: Roll-A-bout Hi Gayle: I wonder if anyone has had a patient use the Roll-A-Bout yet? The website where you can view the product is http://www.roll-a-bout.com/ My husband (who is also a patient at our clinic) has undergone yet another surgery to remove bone because of Osteomyelitis, and my podiatrist has him on the Roll-A-Bout. Being a large man, he is quite unhappy using it, but the non-weight bearing aspect of it is really helping to heal a diabetic ulcer on his foot that we had been trying other avenues (including Regranex) to heal since February. The ulcer may close by next week (keeping fingers crossed), thanks to the surgery and the Roll-A-Bout. Long story about my husband, as a matter of fact Diabetes Forecast will have an article about him coming out in the December issue. (stepped on our cat, he did!) Just wanted to know if anyone else has tried the Roll-A-Bout yet. And if anyone has, how is it working out for the patient? Sincerely, Sharon Hockinson, Medical Assistant (I'm a newbie, just learning - I am not a PMAC yet) Podiatry Clinics San Antonio, Texas www.geocities.com/podiatryclinics *_* *_* *_* From: Paula Hollister, PMAC re: Re-Certification Dear Gayle, Thank you again for all your efforts. I certainly appreciate it. I was wondering how everyone else feels about the new requirements for re-certification? I see that they have jumped them to 20 credits, then they lower the number available at meetings like the Mid-West conference. It would seem to me that they do not want people to continue to be certified because they certainly have not made it easily available. I live in Michigan, in a very rural area, and our state meetings are held 3 hours away from where I live and always on a night that we work late. Usually I do not receive notice of the meetings early enough to schedule out of work. I feel that if they were going to raise the number of credits to become re-certified it would have been nice if they also offered some other alternatives to obtaining the required amount of credits. The conferences have been the best learning and growing experiences for me, however, in order to continue to be certified I would have to go to three per year instead of two. I know their are some alternatives, however I feel that when we are already taking time out of our schedules to go to two conferences per year, requiring a third to remain certified is asking a lot. I just wondered if anyone else was a little upset with these new rules. Thanks again, Paula Hollister, PMAC r_hollister1@msn.com *_* *_* *_* From: Lynn Homisak re: FootZine Dear Gayle, We’ve all heard it said before….When one door closes….another opens and truth is, this realization has become the foundation of FootZine’s existence. With that thought in mind, I write this letter to you as a kind of public “thank you” for the newly created FootZine online broadcasts. I am happy to see that your untimely and unjustified dismissal as a Board member (serving as Editor of the ASPMA Online NewsFlash) did not affect your mission to provide a continuing source of current information for an interested podiatric community, in particular, to our podiatric medical assistant colleagues. It is nice to know that you have kept your professionalism intact and have decided to continue moving forward with this brand-new, independent internet service. It is clear that you possess an admirable talent for managing an informational website such as this and I am glad that this talent will not be wasted. As past Focus Forward chair of ASPMA, I was a strong advocate of starting the initial online project and I knew that if the right person would grab hold of the reins, internet access could be a huge communication benefit, not to mention a promotional tool for that organization. YOU (along with people like Alan Sherman and our friends at Moore Medical who helped get you started) proved that we could make a concept a reality. Thanks to your determination and commitment (and a very strong group of believers), you were able to overcome the adversity and skepticism and turn an unpopular concept into a commendable reality. And now, it’s on to your new venture. Having only broadcast a few issues thus far, FootZine has already proved itself a winner, offering many of those same wonderful features that you had previously developed to a whole new list of subscribers. Those of us fortunate enough to receive FootZine are grateful to continue to obtain the same quality of information and the same degree of professionalism as before. I know there are many others who join me in wishing you well with your new undertaking. You have taken your experience and your knowledge to all new levels in creating this new, unique independent e-zine and have successfully shaped a brand new internet home for assistants. Your commitment to your peers and your subscribers is very much appreciated. Congratulations and much continued success! Lynn Homisak LynnPRT@msn.com *_* *_* *_* From: Steve Zimdahl, DPM, and Marcia Kalka, PMAC Gayle.. Just saying hello. We at Bridgeville Podiatry in Pittsburgh enjoy all the info on here. Steve Zimdahl DPM and Marcia Kalka PMAC Z510pod@aol.com
*_* Gems of
Practice Management *_*
At Disney, three factors drive their business and affect their
success. These are cast (our staff), setting (our
offices) and process (our policies, systems and procedures). Our
ability to produce income has several limitations including things
such as the number of treatment rooms, the effectiveness of our
communication skills and our physical environments. Many
factors are outside our realm of control, including reimbursement
rates and patient expectations.Utilizing Your Most Valuable Resource by Hal Ornstein DPM, FACFAS and Lynn Homisak, PRT, PMAC One area we do have total control of is the number of staff in our office and their productivity. This is one area where many practices fall short, including both new practitioner and the seasoned veteran. Our most valuable asset with the most potential to increase production is too often not utilized effectively. In our office before we hired the second back office assistant, when an employee called in sick it threw us into a tailspin. Now with the additional employee, we are covered. This employee can also reduce the workload of the other two employees by 10 %, resulting in less stress and staff turnover. Patient satisfaction, our office’s principal goal, has significantly increased with reduced waiting time and more face-to-face assistant communication with the patients. The role of the two assistants is essential to an efficient system to maximize the benefits. We designate one assistant as my personal assistant and the other as the floater. My personal assistant stays by my side ready to perform such duties as getting an injection without delay, answering patient questions relating to such things as dressings changes and shoe gear and answering questions about a patient’s condition. This list is only a small part of her duties and saves me a significant amount of time. This is because 50% of patients’ questions can be answered effectively by my assistant because of her training in both podiatry and communication skills. By having my assistants by my side at most times in the treatment room, they can then learn how I communicate conditions and treatments with my patients. It’s the repetitive nature of this inherent training that allows the assistants to mirror my protocols. I no longer have to look for my assistants to get an injection or supply for me while they’re cleaning another room. The days of spending three minutes explaining to Mrs. Jones what type of shoes she should be wearing or answering other simple questions are gone. I now save approximately 10 - 15 minutes per hour utilizing my personal assistant with patients, allowing me to easily see an extra patient per hour. Am I short-changing my patients? Just the opposite. My assistant will reinforce what I’ve told the patient and spend the time to effectively communicate with caring. Patients surveyed continue to reinforce that the system works. Increased income from utilizing an additional assistant to shadow the doctor is not the only significant benefit. In addition, you will likely experience: 1. Improved patient flow with significant reduction in patient waiting time. 2. Employee retention and increased staff satisfaction.
*_* New HIPAA Section *_*
Introducing: HIPAA Q&A.by Raymond F. Posa, MBA "Everything you wanted to know about HIPAA but were afraid to ask! This is the place to ask all of your HIPAA questions. These questions will be answered by the Technology Advisor from the AAPPM and the principals of New Jersey HIPAA. So, submit your questions early and often!" You are already familiar with the HIPAA expertise of Ray Posa, who has submitted several segments in a series about HIPAA for both FootZine and the ASPMA NewsFlash. Now you can email me with your specific HIPAA questions, and Ray will provide the answers for you. We will archive all the questions and answers on a separate "HIPAA FAQ" page at the FootZine.com web site. In the meantime, you can learn more about New Jersey HIPAA at www.NJHIPAA.com
*_* *_* *_*
Thanks once more to all of you who have taken the time to write.
Providing information such as the Practice Management Gems, the
HIPAA articles, and the work-related "Networking" is only
part of why FootZine exists. The other part is to provide a
forum for exchange of ideas among all of you. I look forward
to hearing from you and having the chance to share your thoughts.Writing is a good thing -- be sure to send your email to the new address: gaylejohnson@footzine.com ~ Gayle
* _* *_*
*_*
Copyright 2002 Gayle S. Johnson, PMAC All
Rights Reserved.DISCLAIMER: Acceptance and publication of any letter, article, news item or advertisement does not necessarily constitute or imply approval or endorsement by myself of the product, idea, or content therein. I reserve the right to edit or to not publish any material received. Any health-related information is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice or a substitute for the advice of a health care professional. Information pertaining to legal matters should not perceived as legal advice, nor should discussion about such issues as Medicare and billing be considered as definitive. All content is presented as being only the opinions of the contributors and is for educational purposes only. To Subscribe or Unsubscribe, simply send an email request to me at: gaylejohnson@footzine.com Gayle S. Johnson, PMAC |
| Subscribe to FootZine |