An interesting way to look at convenient care is that it's a new brand of healthcare. The blog brandSTOKE posted about this concept recently in ''Retail clinics vs. your doctor: it may come down to branding.'' The post very concisely explains the reasons for the fall of traditional practices that aren't stepping up to the new focus on patients' ...

Although the country is still in the midst of a major economic crunch, it's important not to overlook/undervalue the importance of quality office help. Yes, having that extra employee can be a financial strain on an audiology practice's bottom line, but I thought I'd share two articles from our recently released November/December 2009 issue of ...

I attended the second annual Aesthetic Extender Symposium last weekend, and days later I am left with some distinct and positive impressions about much more than the aesthetics industry. First, some background. The symposium was cofounded by Krystie P. Lennox, a physician assistant, and David J. Goldberg, a dermatologist who is also a healthcare ...

It has been a very busy fall for ECFC. In addition to general patient care and all the day-to-day administrative issues, we are faced with another task. The state of MN has mandated that all recipients of state-sponsored health insurance have access to and are members of a state-certified Health Care Home. Eagan Child and Family Care is one of ...

Reliable information on the quality of nursing homes is hard to come by these days, according to an article in the Los Angeles Times. Currently, a Web site called Nursing Home Compare, which was created by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in 1998, provides information on nursing homes, from characteristics of residents to ...

Most people figure that work-related injuries are just part of the job for nurses. With all that lifting, turning, repositioning and transferring that nurses do, injuries abound. In fact, a report on the American Nurses Association Web site indicates that an estimated 12 percent of nurses leave the profession every year because of back injuries ...

We've noticed just a couple of practices across the country that are turning to a so-called membership plan to help curtail costs for patients. The model requires patients to pay a flat rate monthly or annually and then covers office visits, routine tests and the like. All the coverage I've seen of this model is careful to emphasize that this is ...

A recent report at HealthReform.gov outlines exactly how health insurance reform, if passed, would strengthen health care for seniors and long-term care residents. ''America's Seniors and Health Insurance Reform: Protecting Coverage and Strengthening Medicare'' outlines, step by step, why the current health care system is ultimately unsustainable ...

This past month we have been working toward dragging our office into the 21st century. As I have mentioned in the past, the state of Minnesota required all healthcare providers to have electronic billing by July 15, 2009. In addition, EMR is an essential component to healthcare home designation. Hence, July and August have been somewhat more ...

Should you open a practice? If so, what kind? During these unstable economic times it is difficult to decide if now is the time to take the risk and open your own clinic. A stable job with a guaranteed hourly wage is tempting. Even if it means you are working for someone else and have to punch a time-card. Still, in the back of your mind you ...