- ICD-10 Coding
- It is hard to believe that it has been almost four years since the implementation of ICD-10! Some may not even remember a day without ICD-10. In the event you have no idea that ICD-9 was a thing, let’s recap. ICD stands for the International Statistical Classification and Related Health Problems, the 10 means we are in the tenth revision of these classifications. This list is managed by the World Health Organization. The switch from ICD-9 to ICD-10 in 2015 provided a greater deal of specificity to diagnostic coding. The previous coding for ICD-9 contained numbers only and did not specify laterality or severity of conditions (i.e. 367.1 Myopia). Whereas, ICD-10 codes begin with a letter followed by numbers and specifies laterality and severity when needed (i.e. Myopia, bilateral as H52.13). I bet you are wondering, why bring this up four years later? Compulink has a wonderful feature that allows us to forward diagnoses from previous visits, which helps with efficiency and saves time. However, sometimes when we forward these they are ICD-9 codes. Don’t worry! We can still use the forward button on the plan tab, however, we have to double check the code that displays when doing so. If you see an ICD-9 code (i.e. 367.1) then we just have to update the code by searching in the list and choosing the proper ICD-10 code (i.e. H52.13). This is important for accurate charting and to enable us to properly bill insurance companies.
- Compulink Patient Portal
- We have received several inquiries from staff and patients about our patient portal and how it works. The patient portal is a web based system that allows patients to access a CCD (Continuity of Care Document) that includes demographic information and diagnoses from their visit, as well as patient education on those conditions. Additionally, a patient’s spectacle and CL prescriptions can be sent to the patient portal by the Medical Records office. The process is initiated by patients receiving an email after their initial visit once the provider has signed off on the record. The email comes from the portal vendor with whom Compulink works called MySecureHealthData.com. The initial email they receive provides instructions on how to create a secure account to access the portal. We have not heavily promoted the patient portal in the past because it was not working properly. While it does not provide an abundance of useful information and does not yet provide bidirectional messaging like the MedCenter’s MyChart, now that it is functional it is important that staff, attendings, and interns be aware of this capability of Compulink. If you have any questions about the portal, please contact Ashley Hill.
- Clearwave
- The clinic is excited to announce the acquisition of the Clearwave kiosk check-in system. This new process will enhance the overall patient experience by decreasing wait time, reducing paperwork, and even allow them to complete and securely send clinic documents electronically from home. The Clearwave system also will provide benefits for the clinic staff by eliminating scanning of HIPAA forms and insurance cards, streamlining the insurance verification process, and improving the accuracy of patient demographic information. Altogether, this will allow staff more time to focus on patient checkout, scheduling appointments, and assisting patients in need. Be on the lookout for our new kiosk systems in June.
OptoMETRICS
- An aspirational goal for each clinic service is to reach 100% fill rate, that is to provide a patient encounter in every available appointment slot. In reality, no-shows, last minute cancellations, poor weather, etc. prevents every appointment filling every day leaving the national fill rate somewhere around 80%. For March 2019, AOC had a fill rate of 96% and PVC had a fill rate of 92%!
Clinic Calendar Highlights
- April 24-25: No PVC, AOC, or VT due to OPT III Final Exams
- April 26: The last day of clinic for the Class of 2019
- April 29-May 3: No CL, BVP, or LVR due to OPT IV graduation week
- May 6-Aug 23: Summer Semester Clinic Rotation
- May 27: Clinics closed in observation of Memorial Day
- July 4: Clinics closed in observation of Independence Day