Physical therapy blog with useful information about physical therapy software, best practices for using technology, physical therapy billing, physical therapy industry events and news from WebPT.
PT blog with with up to date information on how to make the most of your PT management system. Shared comments from PTs are also available on our blog.
As many of you already know, CMS will begin mandating functional limitation reporting on July 1, 2013. In short, this means that if you do not successfully complete functional limitation reporting (in the form of G-codes and corresponding severity modifiers) for every eligible Medicare Part B patient you see beginning July 1, 2013, you will not receive reimbursement for your services. For those of you who treat a high percentage of Medicare patients, successfully completing this requirement may mean the difference between keeping your lights on or closing your doors. Sounds daunting, right? It's actually not. Sure, the repercussions for non-compliance are severe, but it's really not that hard to be compliant—especially if you choose the right reporting tool, like WebPT's fully integrated EMR + functional limitation reporting.
Still getting up to speed on functional limitation reporting? Watch our free functional limitation reporting webinar or download the slides here.
Today's blog post comes from WebPT Co-Founder Heidi Jannenga, PT, MPT, ATC/L.
By now, I’m sure you’ve heard about functional limitation reporting—also known as claims-based outcome reporting (CBOR) and G-code reporting. Regardless of what your clinic calls it, functional limitation reporting is coming quickly. In fact, as of July 1, 2013, CMS is making it mandatory. That means they won’t pay you for your services if you don’t properly report functional limitations via specific G-codes on the claim form for each eligible Medicare patient. Now, if you’re a WebPT Member, we got you covered. In mid-spring, we’re integrating functional limitation reporting (G-codes and corresponding severity modifiers) into your documentation workflow, which will make it a breeze to stay compliant—and thus, get paid.
Last month we covered functional limitation reporting basics in several blog posts, a webinar, and an article on Physiospot, but in the midst of all this—and especially at CSM 2013—I’ve realized that in addition to understanding functional limitation reporting inside and out, we need to understand its importance beyond getting paid. While overall the transition to functional limitation reporting is a good thing, it may actually fall short in terms of bringing our profession closer to achieving evidence-based practice on the whole. Why, you ask?
The Good
Functional limitation reporting will allow us to gain tremendous insight into our patients’ and our peers’ patients’ functional outcomes. Just think of what all that data could show based on treatment type and patient demographics, and that goes for us as individual providers and for us as an industry. This is our chance to prove unequivocally that rehab therapy works—and to see which techniques work best. We’re clearly moving towards a pay-for-performance reimbursement structure, and this is an ideal way to demonstrate our patients’ progress with our care. Additionally, this reporting requirement will make us better therapists by insisting that we treat function and not just objective measures.
The Opportunities
Because this requirement is more heavily focused on the subjective—what the patient thinks and feels—questions remain as to whether it may actually weaken our evidenced-based practice efforts. As an industry, we’ve fully researched and vetted many functional outcome measurement tools as reliable and valid tests. However, they are still based on the subjective complaints of the patient vs. objective measures taken by the therapist. Ultimately, it appears Medicare’s stance is that what the patient thinks and feels is what really matters—which in my opinion is accurate. But it doesn’t appear that Medicare really cares what method or treatment procedures we use to achieve patient improvement—just do it and do it as quickly as possible. This does not promote nor advocate for true evidence-based practice. It’s just by any means necessary.
Go Forward
In the end, though, we can’t let Medicare’s apathetic vibe influence our behavior and practice. While we need to understand and acknowledge the opportunities, it shouldn’t be what we focus on. Let’s hone in on the good. During CSM 2013, in the Autonomy presentation, an attendee stood up and said: “Functional Limitation Reporting is good. It might be more paperwork [which with WebPT, it won’t], but it’ll prove our worth.” That’s the attitude I’m embracing, and I think we all should. We encourage our patients to think positive—no matter how difficult the process or how murky the waters ahead might be. We need to encourage ourselves to do the same.
In January, WebPT released the Medicare Allowable Fee Schedule in preparation for the new Medicare Therapy Cap Alerts we’ll launch this month. In short, this new feature will allow you to reproduce your Allowable Fee Schedule within WebPT as published by Medicare. This fee schedule will inform a tracking tool and subsequent alerts so you can see how much of the therapy cap your patients have accrued using your services.
As a result of this launch, we’ve gotten quite a few questions about the Medicare Therapy Cap and the changes CMS made this year. Here, we’ll share some Q&A we adapted from the APTA’s Medicare Therapy Cap FAQs:
Today’s post comes from WebPT Member Mike Taylor, PT, MBA, OCS, from OrthoSport Physical Therapy. Thanks, Mike!
Don’t:
Do:
According to Hat Trick Associates, as of 2010, there were about 450 million active English language blogs. And in Blog Rules, Nancy Flynn explains that in 2006 a new blog entered the blogosphere every second. Even before Facebook and Twitter, businesses were using blogs as a way to have instant, two-way communication with customers and prospects online. So, why wouldn’t rehab therapists blog? It’s a great way to educate the community, give your practice personality, and promote your expertise.
Why blog?
While you obviously can’t share individual patient data or patient-specific recommendations, you can use your blog to educate, inform, and market generally. From sharing best practices and enlightening anecdotes to highlighting your key differentiators in services or a few core-strengthening home exercises, blogging helps you and your clinic:
Today’s blog comes from E-rehab.com President David Straight, PT, DPT, OCS. E-Rehab provides physical therapy websites, video, email newsletters, search, and social media for physical therapy-owned private practices. Contact David at 800.468.5161 or dave@e-rehab.com.
As Benjamin Franklin once said, “It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one negative one to lose it.” With this statement in mind—and 21st century technology—let’s talk about reputation management in 2013. Here are a few questions to start you thinking:
What is Online Reputation Management?
According to Wikipedia, “online reputation management is the practice of monitoring the Internet reputation of a person, brand, or business, with the goal of emphasizing positive coverage rather than negative reviews or feedback.” While much of online reputation management is focused on keeping negative search results at bay, the successful reputation manager works to “bridge the gap between how a company perceives itself and how others view it.”
Reputation management today is what most people would consider public relations in yesteryears. With all of the different outlets for raving fans or ranting critics (think review sites and social media platforms), reputation management is essential to your overall marketing strategy. All it takes is one unhappy patient, one angry employee, or one unethical competitor, and your online reputation can take a significant hit.
Today's blog post comes from Jack Sparacio, MSPT, COMT, CFMT, and owner of PT Marketing Consultants and Sparacio Physical Therapy. Follow him on Twitter at @SparacioPT.
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You could wait for the phone to just magically start ringing—or you could start thinking like an entrepreneur! In his bestselling, must-read book The E-myth Revisited, author Michael Gerber draws the distinction between "working in your business" and "working on your business.” While this might sound like a simple concept, as physical therapists we seem to forget that in addition to providing great patient care, we’re running a business. Just as you devote time to developing your clinical skills, you have to invest time into developing your company—and yourself as a business owner. You can be the best physical therapist in the world, but if no one knows who you are or what you're doing, your business won’t make it. And it just takes a few focused hours a week to grow your business successfully. Here are three quick tips:
You’ve finished school—graduated with your masters or doctorate in your rehab specialty—but that doesn’t mean your learning days are over. Far from it. Whether it’s informal learning from your peers, brushing up on the latest research in academic journals, or attending formal lectures or clinicals, a therapist’s learning is never done. It can’t be. How else can you stay current? To make sure all licensed therapists are doing just that—staying current—state governing boards mandate continuing education units in order to stay licensed. But with so many choices when it comes to CEUs, how do you find the right ones for you and your practice? You research, research, research. Starting with your state.
CEU requirements vary state to state, so check in with your licensing board before planning your curriculum. In Arizona, for example, a PT must complete 20 contact hours of continuing competences during each two (2) year licensure period. Also, because of the variety of conversions organizations use to determine continuing education units (CEUs), the rules require “contact hours” rather than CEUs be the measurement of continuing competence activities. At least ten (10) of those 20 contact hours must be from activities that an accredited medical, PT, or health care education program; a national or state medical, PT, or health care association (or a component of that association); or a national medical, PT or health care specialty society approves, regardless of whether the activities are on-site, online, or home study.
Now, this isn’t the case for all states. Several do not allow therapists to complete their CEUs in any format other than on-site, in person. While this greatly limits your options, there are still plenty of ways to locate and rack up informational, educational, and interesting continuing education units in person—without spending a fortune.
Here are some resources to help in your search:
Today’s blog post comes from Ann Wendel, PT. Ann is the owner of PranaPT, a member of WebPT, and an active social media participant (@PranaPT). Thanks, Ann!
In today’s market, where patients have greater access to information and higher expectations for the quality of care they receive, the issue of patient satisfaction has received a great deal of attention.
When you hear the words “patient satisfaction,” what images come to mind? Do you view patients as consumers? Are you happy to increase the chances that your patients will feel satisfied with the care they receive from your practice? Or do you feel irritated by the notion of “catering” to your patients? Does your employer tie bonuses and salary increases to your patient satisfaction scores? Is that ethical?
Many articles have been written about patient satisfaction as it relates to the healthcare profession: “How Patient Satisfaction Can Kill,” “Patient Satisfaction Doesn’t Mean the Best Medical Care,” and “Why Linking Patient Satisfaction with Dollars is Misguided.” After all, we’re not in retail where the “customer is always right.” We are called upon to provide not what the patient wants, but what the patient needs. These are often very different things.
I have spoken with many therapists and orthopedic surgeons, regarding how they assess the level of satisfaction patients have with their care. Many clinicians ask patients to fill out a satisfaction survey on their final appointment. Some use plug-and-play survey tools like surveygizmo or SurveyMonkey, while others have made up their own. Regardless of survey type, I believe that the key to having a useful survey is to ask the right questions. And the key to increasing patient satisfaction is to choose the appropriate treatment while educating the patient on why you’re doing what you’re doing.
The concept of a compliance program is new to many in private practice physical therapy. However, it’s a necessary aspect of any practice. Here are some common questions (and answers!) regarding a compliance program:
What is a compliance program?
A compliance program is a set of checks and balances to ensure that a physical therapy practice is meeting its established standards. Another way to look at it is that compliance is a quality program to ensure a clinic is following best practices.
Why do I need a compliance program? There are many reasons for having compliance program:
Now, you may be thinking: “Those are some good reasons for some practices to establish a compliance program, but I’ve never had a problem before and I use a compliant documentation system. So, why would I need a compliance program?”
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