The Voice of Podiatrists

Serving Over 13,500 Podiatrists Daily

March 28, 2012 #4,421 Publisher-Barry Block, DPM, JD

A service of Podiatry Management http://www.podiatrym.com
E-mail us by hitting the reply key.
COPYRIGHT 2012- No part of PM News can be reproduced without the
express written permission of Kane Communications, Inc.

CT Podiatrist Uses EMR to Monitor Post-Op Patients

Podiatrist Dr. Peter Blume is a step ahead of many doctors in private practice. "It's a rolling record," he said. "I have access to the pharmaceuticals, their medications, their history and if they are enrolled in Yale, if they've had treatments, MRI, CT Scans, it's in the system."   

Dr. Peter Blume

Dr. Blume's practice, Affiliated Foot and Ankle Surgeons in New Haven, is now in its fourth week of implementing EPIC, linking hospitals, physicians, and patients, in the Yale-New Haven system. "In addition to the fact that I've operated on somebody," he said, "I can access their discharge dictations, their operative reports, and at night, I can look at what's happening as far as their medications, and I get reports."

Source: Jocelyn Maminta, WTNH [3/26/12]

OCPM Announces Hall of Fame Inductees

The Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine is pleased to announce the 2012 OCPM Hall of Fame Society inductees! This year, Dr. Allan Boike, Dr. Jerauld Ferritto, and Dr. Michael King will be inducted into the OCPM Hall of Fame Society at the 2012 Glass Slipper Fete on May 19, 2012.

Drs. Allan Boike, Jerauld Ferritto, and Michael King

Previous OCPM Hall of Fame inductees include Drs. Terence Albright, Richard Berkowitz, Steven Berlin, James Conforti, H. Darrell Darby, Mildred Dixon, Bernhardt Egerter, Henry Green, Earl Kaplan, William Munsey, Hal Ornstein, Richard Ransom, Jeffrey Robbins, Allan Spencer, and Raymond Suppan.

Diabetes Amputation Rate Growing: Aussie Podiatrists

Australian podiatrists are calling for urgent action from the Federal Government to help reduce the number of diabetes-related amputations. The Australasian Podiatry Council (APC) estimates that as many as 85 Australians a week are having lower limb amputations - a rate it says is nearly the worst in the industrialized world.

Andrew Schox

APC president Andrew Schox says amputation is a big problem not only in Australia but elsewhere in the world. "In Australia, we don't follow best practice as would be suggested by the scientific studies, and in countries where they do follow best practice, they get dramatically better outcomes than we do," he said.

Source: Samantha Donovan, Australia Broadcasting Corporation [3/26/12]

Aussie Podiatrist to Co-Host Healthy Walking Webcast

One foot in front of the other: for those desiring a fresh start on a healthy lifestyle, walking just thirty minutes a day is an important step in the direction of good health. On Tuesday, March 27th, Dr. Andrew Weil, collaborator on Weil Integrative Footwear, and Orthaheel founder, Australian podiatrist Phillip Vasyli will host a live "Virtual Tea" webcast that introduces tips to establish a lifestyle dedicated to healthy habits.

Philip Vasyli

This global digital event kicks off a nationwide Walkabout campaign, led by 50 brand ambassadors from across the United States, to put a public spotlight on walking for physical and emotional health. The campaign will take place over a 28-day period of time, during which the ambassadors will post about their daily walks on a variety of social media channels, encouraging Americans to get out and walk.

APMWA Announces 26th Annual Student Writing Competition

The American Podiatric Medical Writers Association has announced its 26th Annual Student Writing Competition.

• All papers MUST be non-technical in nature. Appropriate subjects include practice management, ethics, law, education, or any topic that would be suitable for a lay publication.
   
• There is no word limitation. Papers will be graded for content, style, grammar, neatness, and overall impact.
   
• First prize will be one thousand dollars ($1,000.00), sponsored by an APMA Educational Foundation endowment from Dr. and Mrs. Steven Berlin, and recognition in the APMA NEWS and the APMWA Newsletter. Honorable Mention Certificates may also be awarded.
   
• This competition is open to ANY enrolled podiatric student.
   
• Entries must be received by 4/15/12 via e-mail at bblock@podiatrym.com
   
• Entries become the property of APMWA, which may arrange publication of the entry.

AZ Podiatrist Keynotes at OSU "T2C" Conference

David G. Armstrong, Professor of Surgery and Director of the University of Arizona's Southern Arizona Limb Salvage Alliance (SALSA) gave the keynote talk on the second day of the Ohio State University's Translational to Clinical (T2C) wound healing conference. 

Dr. David G. Armstrong outside the Lecture Theatre at the Ohio Union

Armstrong presented new data from a large-scale, four-year project evaluating outcomes of the "toe and flow" model of care showing that team care profoundly changes surgical approaches from "reactive and ablative" to "proactive and preventative."

Query: Reumofan Plus

Has anyone prescribed or personally taken the herbal medication Reumofan Plus for pain and/or inflammation? If so, what have your experiences been? 

Joe Borden, DPM, Reseda, CA

Query:  Recommendations for EMR/EHR
 
If 50% of practices are currently using EMR/EHR, the remaining 50% of us looking to make the transition need some help. Based on the experiences of those who have lived through the transition, which are the best EMR/EHR systems that are recommended for a medium-sized podiatry practice (2 FT, 1 PT doc)? We need a quick and easy transition - our old office system is maxed out. 
 
Greg Caringi, DPM, Lansdale, PA

Query: Billing Q4038 Casting Supplies

When we bill Q4038 (cast supplies, short leg cast, adult, fiberglass) with CPT 29405 (application of short leg cast [below knee to toes]), should we bill units based on how many rolls are used? Is Medicare Part B (WPS) paying for these supplies? The reason I ask is they are denying with a "16" code. When I talk to a rep, she is telling me the denial is related to the quantity billed. I put down '4' for 4 rolls used in the unit box.

Karen, Biller, Office of Isidore Steiner, DPM, Howell, MI

Response: When using HCPCS casting supply code, Q4038, you should only use a quantity of "1" regardless of the number of rolls used.

The description for the code specifies cast supplies, it does not break the supplies down into individual components.

Robert Weatherford, Jacksonville, FL

Codingline subscription information can be found here
APMA Members: Click here for your free Codingline Silver subscription

RE: Summit LifeDop 300 (John Scholl, DPM)
From: Richard A. Simmons, DPM

The query concerns if the system is easy-to-use, reliable, and if there are any issues with reimbursement. My observation is that you are looking at technology that you will grow out of very quickly. At a minimum, you want technology that can interface with your computer or even your EHR. Nothing in the literature suggest that it does.

I use Koven’s SmartDop with which I can have a direct computer interface during the examination. It will also store up to 30 waveforms in the unit (for example, for house calls or nursing home visits). It creates an organized report that can be immediately saved as a .pdf document into your computer or EHR. Reimbursement simply requires that you follow the rules of the insurance carrier. In Florida, you can check Medicare’s LCD (Local Carrier Determination) rules under number: L29237.

Disclaimer: I have no financial interests or otherwise with Koven Technology.

Richard A. Simmons, DPM Rockledge, FL  RASDPM32955@gmail.com

RE: Issues with Cerner Billing Software (Scarlett Kinley, DPM)
From: Dan Klein, DPM

In response to Dr. Kinley's problem with Cerner software, I too have had similar problems. It turns out that the updated CMS software edits were somehow not in place when my claims were submitted after January 2012. Only after receiving rejected claims from Medicare was I made aware of this problem. I had to go back into my databanks and make sure that zip codes included the extra 4 digits.

Additionally, Cerner deals only with the software. One has to ensure that your clearinghouse (mine is McKesson) is also up-to-date on CMS edits. I have to go through Cerner to converse with the clearinghouse. Yes, there was a delay, but I am finally on track for claims processing. I have expressed my dissatisfaction with Cerner for not ensuring that the clients' software updates were in place by November 2011.
 
Dan Klein, DPM, Ft. Smith, AR, TOEFIXER@aol.com

RE: Taking X-Rays on Patients with Ingrown Nails (Tony Poggio, DPM)
From: Barry Mullen, DPM

The key concept in Dr. Poggio's reply is "medical necessity." Healthcare providers must be able to justify the performance of any given service from both medically necessary and appropriate standards. This is a key component within medical compliance regulatory guidelines that we're all held accountable to and by which third-party carriers decide benefits upon.

In addition, X-ray exposure is not completely innocuous. It has inherent, associated risks, albeit somewhat limited with pedal collimators; but, one does have a medical responsibility to limit x-ray exposure for only those circumstances where its outcome affects one's medical decision-making.

GROSS over-utilization of any service eventually leads to...

Editor's note: Dr. Mullen's extended-length letter can be read here.

Whether you have used equipment to sell or our offering an associate position, PM News classified ads are the fastest, most-effective way of reaching over 13,500 DPM's. Write to bblock@podiatrym.com or call (718) 897-9700 for details. Weekly ad rates start as low as $115 for a 50-word ad. THIS OFFER DOES NOT APPLY TO BUSINESSES PROVIDING PRODUCTS OR SERVICES. Note: For commercial or display ads contact David Kagan at (800) 284-5451.

• To Post a message, send it to:    bblock@podiatrym.com
• Notes should be original and may not be submitted to other publications or listservs without our express written permission.
• Notes must be in the following form:
  RE: (Topic)
  From: (your name, DPM)
  Body of letter. Be concise. Limit to 250 words or less). Use Spellchecker
  Your name, DPM City/State
• Subscribers are reminded that they have an ethical obligation to disclose any potential conflicts of interest when commenting on any product, procedure, or service.