Posted by: AtlasMD

April 9, 2013

Use Facebook Chat Effectively

Use Facebook Chat Effectively

Facebook Chat is one of a multitude of online chat platforms. It allows quick instantaneous communication with a limitless number of people. More than you’ll likely ever want to talk to at once. Besides being embedded within one of the most highly trafficked websites on the planet, it has a key advantage: a certain degree of privacy.

As a doctor, you’ll of course want to check with state regulation to make sure Facebook Chat is compliant with standards. Here at AtlasMD, based in Kansas, we are able to Facebook chat with patients who sign a confidentiality agreement. A key advantage to this forum is that the messages are only able to be accessed by a sole user, and can be deleted at will.

First, make sure you are familiar with what Facebook Chat is and how to use it. Check out Facebook Chat Basics. The How To Use Facebook Chat section is all you need to get going. It’s easy to use. If you want, get a friend or family member to “chat” with you to try it out.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

April 9, 2013

Make Friends With Social Media, Carefully

Concierge medicine opens up new opportunities to enhance patient-doctor relationships through social media. But doctors need to know how to use the tools to make the most of them. And they need to know how to do so responsibly. This first post will go over the basics. Keep this link handy, though, since links to more specific best practices will be added below over time.

Please be advised, do not start connecting with patients right away. At least not yet. First things first, get your head around social media. Then determine how you can use these tools to positively reinforce your relationship with the Web at large, as well as colleagues and patients.

If you’re already feeling comfortable with using Facebook and Twitter as a personal user, check out the growing list of topics covering Social Media Best Practices For Medical Professionals. Otherwise keep going for a breakdown of what Facebook and Twitter are useful for.

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Posted by: Josh Umbehr, M.D.

April 9, 2013

Simplify Healthcare With Two Simple Actions

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law in March of 2010. Fortunately, Section 1301(a)(3) allows direct primary care medical homes to operate in the state-based insurance exchanges beginning in 2014. Now more Americans will be able to elect direct primary care!

What Can I Do To Support This Type of Care?

If you are a provider or a concerned citizen you can join the Direct Primary Care Coalition. Signing up is as easy as providing an email address. Then you can stay on top of everything important happening in Congress that pertains to direct primary care.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

April 9, 2013

Kansas Direct Medicine Gets an Obamacare Bypass

There’s nothing like waking up to some seriously good news! Last Friday, the Topeka Capital Journal said the Kansas House of Representatives “eventually passed a bill” that will permit the state’s health insurance market to sell stripped-down policies.

So what’s that mean? It means Kansas residents can purchase an insurance plan covering only high-cost events like emergency, trauma and unexpected operations. This will free up the ability to pay for general care out of pocket. And it motivates doctors to stay within and join the direct care business model. Happy patients and doctors can keep up their successful relationships without the government getting in the way. And more doctors can partake in direct care’s more enjoyable professional environment.

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Posted by: Josh Umbehr, M.D.

April 9, 2013

A Word on Bipartisanship

Your mother may have told you something like, Never talk about politics or religion at the dinner table. I know mine did and she was assuredly right. These topics are notoriously divisive.

AtlasMD is proud to be an industry leader in the thriving concierge medicine industry. We offer benefits such as more one-on-one time with patients and 24/7 house calls, all for the less than the cost of a cup of coffee per day. It’s easy to see why our business model has garnered support.

However, as Obamacare approaches, a wholesome conversation at the dinner table can quickly escalate into a political debate. Politics are part of life, of course, but I encourage my patients to remember what’s most important — our health and longevity.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

April 9, 2013

Look out! Josh Umbehr Is A “Top Doc” According To Concierge Medicine Today

Concierge Medicine Today (CMT) looks for physicians every year who have done great work in the industry and of course they found Dr. Josh!

Doctors can earn a “Top Doc” nod from a bunch of factors like improving patients’ lives directly, helping out in their community or State, using social media in exciting new ways, or doing anything genuinely impressive.

Fourteen doctors were selected in total this year from all across the continental U.S. According to CMT’s press release there were a ton of exceptional doctors to choose from. This comes in part because there are extraordinary practices opening up in markets like Kansas, Montana, Utah, Vermont and even Bismarck, North Dakota. And considering how rapidly the industry is growing, the recognition comes with even more prestige now.

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