Posted by: AtlasMD

November 20, 2014

Medium.com: Sharing is the Future of Healthcare

Susannah Fox sheds light on something so many people take for granted in her recent article for Medium.com. Sharing.

Time is of the Essence.

Fox shares a story of a patient with a very rare condition who took it upon herself to track her medications’ interactions. It’s because of this she was able to refuse a certain prescribed medications that could have been lethal to her. When met with resistance from the prescribing doctor, she had to defend herself against the argument that, “for 20 years he has been telling all his patients to take it and no one else has ever complained.”

The particularly frightening portion of this story is that the physician prescribed without checking how the medications would interact with each other. Equally disturbing is that he then challenged the patient, attempting to coerce her into submission.

Maybe he had a reason for doing what he did. Maybe he didn’t have the time to do his research. Maybe he was in a rush to get to his next patient. Who knows.

But that sigh of relief you just heard? That came from all the Direct Primary Care physicians out there who don’t have to worry about such things as rushing from one patient to the next, or not having time to do research. Because the DPC model is not reliant upon meeting quotas, making a certain amount of money, or owing anything to big pharma. Read more

Posted by: AtlasMD

November 19, 2014

What Really Happens When You Cut the Red Tape?

Dr. Michael D. Shaw takes us to the heart of what Direct Primary Care is all about in his recent contribution to HealthNewsDigest.com.

“The doctor/patient relationship has deteriorated precisely because the patient is no longer the client.”

The moment physicians are forced to turn their attention from a patient, hold up one finger as if to say, “Hold on.” and become engaged elsewhere is the very moment the doctor patient relationship begins to break down. It’s all traced back to the fact that physicians must see so many patients in such a short amount of time… and are therefore forced to spend on average a mere 7 minutes with them during the appointment.

Third parties. Insurance. Bureaucracy. Read more

Posted by: AtlasMD

November 17, 2014

Recommended Reading: The Checklist Manifesto

We often get asked for recommended reading lists. We’re delivering! These weekly posts feature one book we highly recommend to learn more about business, philosophy, and different perspectives to help you run your business. Do you have a recommendation that’s not on the list yet? Mention it in the comments!

This Week’s Recommendation: The Checklist Manifesto.

In his latest bestseller, Atul Gawande shows what the simple idea of the checklist reveals about the complexity of our lives and how we can deal with it.

The modern world has given us stupendous know-how. Yet avoidable failures continue to plague us in health care, government, the law, the financial industry—in almost every realm of organized activity. And the reason is simple: the volume and complexity of knowledge today has exceeded our ability as individuals to properly deliver it to people—consistently, correctly, safely. We train longer, specialize more, use ever-advancing technologies, and still we fail. Atul Gawande makes a compelling argument that we can do better, using the simplest of methods: the checklist. In riveting stories, he reveals what checklists can do, what they can’t, and how they could bring about striking improvements in a variety of fields, from medicine and disaster recovery to professions and businesses of all kinds. And the insights are making a difference. Already, a simple surgical checklist from the World Health Organization designed by following the ideas described here has been adopted in more than twenty countries as a standard for care and has been heralded as “the biggest clinical invention in thirty years” (The Independent).

BUY THE CHECKLIST MANIFESTO >

Posted by: AtlasMD

November 13, 2014

What’s New in the Atlas.md EMR?

Check out the latest round of updates and feature releases for the Atlas.md EMR.

Did You Notice?
Some new information is now being featured on your login screen. You’ll find helpful blurbs about new features, and what we’re talking about on the blog just below the login fields.

Smooth Transition to iPhone 6
The iPhone 6 and 6+ are bigger than ever. To accommodate, Atlas.md EMR improved the size and resolution of the graphics within the app to ensure users have a smooth experience throughout.

Better Note Editing
The creator of a note can do more than simply edit the content. Now users can view previous versions of the note, including the reason the note was edited in the first place. Linear transparency = real efficiency. Read more about editing notes over here.

Automated Birthday Messages
Atlas.md EMR users can automatically send patients an email on their birthday. Read more about setting this up over here.

Easier Macro Viewing
Now you can view your custom macros, and patient-only macros with one click. Catch up on all things macro here.

Additional Notification Options
You already had the option to schedule appointment reminders or follow up messages using email, but now you can utilize Twitter DMs and SMS, too. Read more about it in this article.

Resend Fax Messages
Resend failed faxes and successful faxes, see who failed faxes were sent to and why they failed in the first place. Get the details over here.

Notification of Task Assignment
If someone assigns you to a task, you’ll receive an email notification explaining the details so you won’t miss a thing. Read more about email task notifications here.

Manage Recurring Appointments
If you have a recurring appointment set, now you can edit just one of those events instead of the entire block.

Posted by: AtlasMD

November 5, 2014

Kevin.MD: Healthcare Has Failed at Customer Service

But according to Dr. Rusnak, a family medicine resident, that’s all about to change thanks to Direct Care and other business models like it.

“There are a few physicians ahead of the curve right now. They get it and fully understand that the industry is changing. You may call it the consumerization of health care. I call it paying attention to the entirety of a doctor’s appointment.”

One Medical Group is a Primary Care practice that offers patients who are willing to pay an additional $150 per month many of the same features you’ll find in the ever-growing Direct Care model. A relaxing atmosphere, appointments that last as long as the patient needs them to, and no wait times. Oh, and smiling staff members.  Read more

Posted by: AtlasMD

October 30, 2014

REBEL.MD: The War on Physicians Escalates

The Sunshine Act attempts to shed light on a potential ulterior motive of physicians influenced by exterior perks, but in what seems to be the latest attack on physicians, Direct Primary Care advocates like Dr. Cavale are fighting back.

“After nearly 20 years of clinical practice, I have yet to encounter even one instance where I felt I prescribed a drug or referred a patient for a test under the influence of a payment or gift from a pharmaceutical company… Our loyalty is and should be to our patient only and patient benefit should be our criteria while prescribing a drug or device.”

Dr. Cavale is in the DPC business to create trust between he and his patients, not tear it down with seemingly unsubstantiated claims.

“The Sunshine Act adds one more suggestion that patients should distrust their doctors. I am not surprised that leaders of both political parties gang up against physicians, but I am astonished that the major media outlets have bought into this notion, without asking for evidence of conflict. Could it be possible that these actions are a concerted effort by those in power to force patients to accept government-prescribed cook-book medical care as the only option available to them, by forcing physicians to be mere pawns in this chess game? Someone tell me it ain’t so!”

But take solace in the fact that word of mouth is powerful. Very powerful. So, may the patients of Direct Primary Care clinics tell the world about the positive experiences they have with their physicians. May they spread the word about how DPC docs put their patients first.

May they declare with confidence that they trust their Direct Primary Care physicians, and in doing so put this whole thing to rest. Once and for all. 

Posted by: AtlasMD

October 30, 2014

DPC is More Than a Trend. Dr. Wulfers is Proving It.

According to an article published on ILuvLocalPlaces.net, Direct Primary Care physicians who are “making the radical departure from traditional healthcare” have the answers to the negative connotation healthcare carries these days. The positive paradigm shift is reflected in the words used to describe DPC.

  • “… old school care with advanced technology and modern medicine.”
  • “… small number of patients, top notch referrals…”
  • “… access to wholesale medicine…”
  • “… preventative checkups, same day appointments…”
  • “… 24/7 access to your physician.”

Dr. Mike Wulfers of IndependentMD in Missouri is one of the “trendsetters” of DPC, and like so many other physicians, he was unhappy with the way healthcare had been evolving. So he did something about it. As a result, he’s operating a practice that puts his patients first – just the way he always imagined. Rather than facing retirement with a bitter taste in his mouth, he’s able to continue his career in a truly meaningful way. He partially credits Atlas MD’s Dr. Josh for showing him back to what he feels is the root of medicine.

“In March of 2013 we were driving to Florida. On a Sunday morning  I had my iPad and was Googling Direct Primary Care and started looking at the practice in Wichita… I sent the email and about 10 min later my iphone rings and it’s Dr. Josh himself.”  He laughs as he talks about his surprise in how quickly they responded.”

Dr. Wulfers is candid about how his retirement alternative is going for him: “I’m having loads of fun!”

Posted by: AtlasMD

October 29, 2014

THE HILL: The Pinch of the Primary Care Bottleneck

“According to a 2013 study by the Commonwealth Fund, 26 percent of 2,000 Americans surveyed said they waited six days or more for a doctor’s appointment when they were sick or needed care.”

If that snippet isn’t enough to convince you DPC is the way to go (you know, the whole same day scheduling, home visit thing), then maybe nothing will.

But in a world where a traditional primary care physician has 2,000 patient charts on her desk and must spend 17.4 hours per day to provide them with adequate care, the truth is that the fluidity of DPC is better for everyone. In a nutshell, physicians are doing what they love (caring for patients and as a result loving their jobs) and patients are getting what they deserve (quality healthcare in an available, comfortable format).

Plus, did you know DPC integrates with the ACA? 

“…the ACA allows DPC practices to offer coverage in the health insurance exchanges when combined with a wraparound catastrophic insurance policy provided by a qualified health plan (QHP). The QHP is used for hospitalization, specialty care and other more costly services. To date, there are no DPC practices operating in the federally facilitated exchanges, but the first DPC offering paired with a QHP will be available in the Washington state exchange in January 2015.”

Bottleneck, busted.

Posted by: AtlasMD

October 29, 2014

What’s New in the Atlas.md EMR? Part Two.

Messages Inbox Now Includes Automatic Routing
When there’s no doubt when a message goes with a certain patient, Atlas.md will automatically put the message where it goes – in the correct patient’s chart. So if there are no duplicate email or phone numbers found, the app will be its proactive self by helping you out with the details. But don’t worry, these automatically routed messages can be easily reviewed, deleted or even re-assigned to different patients through your regular Messages Inbox. You’ll see a little note alerting you any time a message has been automatically routed.

Sending Emails Directly from Atlas.md
You’ve always been able to hook up your inbox to your external email client and send emails through Atlas.md, but now you have the option to skip the external part if you’d like. As long as you have Amazon email service enabled and verified, you can send emails to patients straight from the sidebar of Atlas.md. The message will still end up in the patient’s record, detouring around the inbox. Read more

Posted by: AtlasMD

October 28, 2014

What’s New in the Atlas.md EMR? Part One.

Here a look into the latest feature updates we’ve launched.

Introducing Your Files Inbox
The new Files Inbox feature allows your clinic to connect to other file sharing applications, or email-in files to make your clinic’s life easier by providing a quick and easy way to send attachments to your account. Essentially, your documents will now be accessible to the entire office. Catch up on the details over here.

Better Vitals Tracking
Now you can integrate fitness apps to Atlas.md to track vitals, or enter them manually to stay on top of your patients’ health. Read more about this update here.

Expanded Appointment Reminder Options
You can send appointment reminders using any of the patient’s preferred methods of contact, which now includes Twitter DMs. To review the full list of scheduling and appointment reminder options, read this.

But wait, there’s more! Now when you set an appointment, you can kill two birds with one stone by scheduling follow ups or reminders right then and there. That’s right – you can choose when the appointment notification goes out. Find out how over here.

More Macros
We’ve added some helpful macros to use throughout the application. Some of the newest include:

  • #SH: Social History
  • #HH: Health History
  • #CCH: Chronic Conditions History
  • #Vitals: integrates with vitals tracking feature above and inserts the latest reading taken.

Check out the full list here.

Custom Lab Attachments
You already know that if you use Quest for your lab processing, results are automatically uploaded to your patient’s chart. If you use another lab provider, however, now you can upload the results you get from them, and still tag it as a lab result so it’s just as searchable as Quest information. Read more about it over here.

Read more