At HCPro's Accreditation Specialist Boot Camp, we continue to receive questions about standing orders, protocols, and verbal/telephone orders. With spring on its way by the time this article is published, I thought a fresh look at these topics would be in order (no pun intended). Let's try to dispel the myths and go straight to what the regulations say and what is best practice to meet them.
If your department is looking for a new case manager, the stakes can be high. Hiring the wrong person can result in lost time, money, and productivity. Find the right fit the first time by following some simple strategies that help you move past the candidate's paper persona and get a better picture of how he or she will perform in a real-life setting.
This January, CMS expanded its readmissions prevention program, adding two more procedures to its list of conditions for which hospitals can be penalized if patients with the conditions are readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of discharge. To prevent these readmissions, hospitals and case managers need to understand the factors that drive them.
Q: Is there a sample risk analysis about how an enterprise or clinic might evaluate and determine if data-at-rest protection through encryption is reasonable and appropriate as defined in the HIPAA Security Rule?
There's considerable confusion about what HIPAA means and what your obligations are under the regulations. I recently presented at a Midwest physician association conference. As is almost always the case, in the front row was an attendee just waiting for the Q&A session.
Many of the facilities that once specialized in mental health services across the country have shut their doors in recent years, making it more likely than ever that hospitals will encounter patients with mental health needs in the emergency department (ED).
