The Voice of Podiatrists

Serving Over 13,500 Podiatrists Daily

July 06, 2012 #4,507 Publisher-Barry Block, DPM, JD

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Cecil William Davis, DPM

Cecil William Davis, DPM, of Hackensack, NJ, passed away on Wednesday, June 27th at the age of 92. A Fellow and one-time president of the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons, Cecil practiced podiatry from his home and office in Hackensack, NJ until his retirement in 1999. Before medicine, Cecil served in the U.S. Army in World War 2 and the Korean War, earning an honorable discharge as a 1st Lieutenant.

Source: Record/Herald News [7/5/12]

Tweak Your Footwear to Prevent Problems: NY Podiatrist

Your feet are two tough tootsies. They spend their days shoved into stilettos, pounding pavements and supporting your weight while you bounce around on the treadmill or take a Zumba class. It's no wonder that one out of six people in this country complain of foot problems.

Dr. Hillary Brenner

But no need to stay seated in sneakers all day. "If you just tweak your footwear and give your feet some TLC, you should be able to stave off most problems," says podiatrist Hillary Brenner, DPM, a New York City podiatrist and spokeswoman for the American Podiatric Medical Association.

Source: Hallie Levine Sklar, Health.com [7/4/12]

IL Podiatrist Relates Fascinating War Story 

It has been nearly 70 years since he was injured in World War II. Time has brought the Purple Heart recipient more pieces to life’s puzzle but no apparent reason why those parts fell into the places they did. During World War II, Dr. Frank Barbaric and another soldier became lost after returning from a supply run. It was after 8 p.m., and the Germans had begun their nightly shelling of the Allied compound. With Barbaric’s foxhole nowhere in sight, the two men banged at the door of an American command post and begged for shelter. They were told the post already was overcrowded and turned away.

Dr. Frank Barbaric (Brett Roseman)

“I started swearing and praying,” Barbaric said. Finally, he positioned his head between the two 10-gallon water containers he was carrying and hoped for the best. He remembers a deafening blast that lifted his body four feet off the ground. It wasn’t until the next day that he discovered he’d been hit with shrapnel in his left ankle and right hip. He was taken to the field hospital, where he learned the command post that had denied him entrance the previous night had taken a direct hit. All but one of the seven men inside were killed. “The only survivor was the radio man,” Barbaric said.

An even stranger moment came 30 years later when a man came in with a serious toe infection. As Barbaric was treating him, the man continuously asked questions about the war. It turned out, the guy was the radio man, the sole survivor of the blast on the command post.

Source: Donna Viceroy, Southtown Star [7/4/12]

HHS Auditors Release HIPAA Audit Protocol

The Office for Civil Rights at HHS has published what it describes as "a comprehensive audit protocol" containing the requirements that will be assessed when it conducts privacy and security compliance audits as outlined in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

The newly posted audit protocol covers HIPAA privacy-rule requirements for the notice of privacy practices for personally identifiable healthcare records, a patient's right to request privacy protection for his or her records, patient access to personal records, the uses and disclosures of patient information, an accounting of disclosures, amending records, and other administrative requirements.

Source: Joseph Conn, Modern Healthcare [July 5, 2012]

Query: Amazing Charts EMR

If you have an experience with Amazing Charts EMR, please share it with this forum. This fall, an upgrade will be released that will allow practices to use Amazing Charts for billing and management of patient accounts.

Gary A. Lieber, DPM  Delray Beach, FL

RE: The Passing of Cecil Davis, DPM
From: Edward R. Nieuwenhuis, DPM

Today, a family has lost a beloved father, grandfather, and great-grandfather; podiatry has lost a valued colleague, and I have lost a friend. Cecil was the epitome of a kind gentleman, and one of the most caring people it has been my pleasure to be associated with. He also served his country with distinction in World War II and the Korean War. He will be missed by all who knew him.
 
Edward R. Nieuwenhuis, DPM, Sr., Wycoff, NJ

RE: Newton Running Shoes and Forefoot Pain (Pete Smith, DPM)
From: Ayne Furman, DPM

The Newton running shoes thst I have worked with have a very minimal heel raise to almost negative. This will require the user of the shoe to either have adequate ankle flexion, which your patient does not, or run a fairly fast pace so there is minimal heel strike. Your patient's symptoms may be coming from compensation for his ankle equinus or running too slow in the Newtons for his foot structure (this is not meant to be a joke).

Two treatment options: 1) Bilateral heel lifts in the Newtons 2) Different running shoes with more of a heel raise.

Ayne Furman, DPM, Alexandria, VA, l_foot_r@hotmail.com

RE: PDAC Verification Requirement Delayed
From: Paul Kesselman, DPM

The article titled, "Coding Verification Reviews for Custom Fabricated Ankle-Foot Orthoses", published May 16, 2012, concerning coding verification for the 3 HCPCS codes: L1940, L1960, L1970, is currently under review by the DME MACs. Back in May 2012, the Price Data Analysis Contractor (PDAC) announced that as of September 1, 2012 all custom ankle-foot orthotics (AFTOs) would be required to be verififed by the PDAC. That is the PDAC would need to review the manufacturing process and final end-product prior to these devices being able to be billed to your DME MAC. This includes all devices coded as LL930, L1960, L1970 and others.

PDAC has just announced that the September 1, 2012 Effective Date as stated in the article is on hold until further notice. 

Paul Kesselman, DPM, Woodside, NY, pkesselman@pol.net

RE: EHR Exemption for Small Practices? (Mark H. Sugar, DPM)
From: Arthur Gudeon, DPM

I'm now 77 years old and in practice since 1960, having had our class' 50th anniversary of graduation at the NYCPM ceremonies 2 years ago. I'm only practicing P/T now, but as I've always said, I'm going to keep going 'til I get it right! As a solo practitioner, I also researched the whole EMR/EHR/eRx situation with Linda, my office manager of the past 33 years, and we too came to the same decision you did. We'll take any "lumps and bumps" thrown at us, and as I fully intend to remain working until WAY past 2016, will accept any penalties that that decision entails!  It's such fun being a dinosaur and not bothering my old deteriorating head with all that new-fangled computerized stuff...leave that for the podiakids!

Arthur Gudeon, DPM, Rego Park, NY, afootdoc@hotmail.com

RE: Nurse Practitioners Modernization Act (Robert Bijak, DPM)
From: Ira Baum, DPM

Well stated. With all the surgical training and trauma that podiatrists are experienced in, it’s a shame that, even if we don’t believe it, we are still perceived by many as ancillary practitioners. If you don’t think so, how many podiatrists are now working with orthopedists doing their foot and ankle surgery? They really are “Dr. Practitioners”. If they don’t think so, here is a litmus test. Go out on your own, see how much you get reimbursed for the same procedures, and if there’s an orthopedic surgeon specializing in foot and ankle, see how many referrals you get. Podiatrists need to stand up for themselves, no matter what it takes. If not, we’ll be begging for scraps as the new healthcare paradigm matures.

Ira Baum, DPM,Miami, FL, ibaumdpm@bellsouth.net

RE: Unrestricted Medical Licenses (Larry Kansky DPM, JD)
From: Elliot Udell, DPM

Editor's note: The link to Dr. Udell's letter was inadvertantly left out of yesterday's PM News. The full letter can be read here.

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