Bracing for Hurricane Matthew or any natural disaster

As I write this blog for you all today, I am sitting in a hotel in Jacksonville, Fla., because I am working with an amazing periodontal office with their systems, health history updates and overall practice efficiency. Last night, I spoke to their study club members on some practical measures when it comes to protecting their patient records. It is ironic that, as I write this, we are on the verge of Hurricane Matthew hitting the east coast of Florida … so this post becomes so much more important.

It is up to the practice to make sure that their patients’ Protected Health Information (PHI) is kept confidential, the integrity of the record is sound and your patients’ records are accessible. So as I watch the Weather Channel from my hotel room tonight, I wanted to put together some tips you can follow to help you protect your patient’s information.

Notice what I said “some tips you can follow to help you protect your patient’s information.” It is not the job of your software, your hardware or your office design to ensure the protection of your patient’s data. It is up to you to put systems in place.

Since Florida is on the verge of a Category 4 hurricane, I want to point out a few things that could potentially affect the confidentiality, integrity and accessibility of your patient’s protected health information.

• Power outages are going to be a huge issue with this upcoming storm. If you are going to close the office and want to have access to some of your patients’ information for returning calls, phoning in medications or following up with your patients after some surgeries, I would recommend you using Dentrix Mobile. When you use Dentrix Mobile, you have the opportunity to remote in using a mobile device and having access to some of your patients’ critical information.
• Make sure an authorized team member has access to the backup of all the patient data in case of flooding or destruction of the practice. The backup of the data might be on an external hard drive or in an online secure backup system. Dentrix has the option of using eBackup to store your patients’ information securely and safely. This would give your practice a good option to access patient data in case of an emergency.
• Make sure you have your Business Associate Agreements in place with your outside contractors. What if you are working with a consultant, accountant, attorney or computer company who has access to your patients’ information and they are the ones who are affected by the storm which jeopardizes the confidentiality of your patients’ information?

You can never do too much to prepare for a disaster and you have an obligation to protect your patients’ health information. It is not something you want to take lightly. Seeing this storm and looking back on storms in the past makes me realize we should be prepared for anything.

Don't settle on the defaults

Okay, I get it. You are not quite ready to dive into electronic forms, load them up on your website for patients to fill out online or link them up to an iPad. If you are wanting to go paperless, then using the document center in Dentrix is going to be how you will manage all your paper forms. What I am finding with so many offices is that they think they have to settle with the default settings that came with the Dentrix installation.

Since the document center will be your best friend when it comes to paper storage, here are some tips to make it work as best as it can for you.

When you think of the document center, think of it like a big file cabinet with hanging file folders and then you put the pieces of paper into it. I want you to customize the names of the hanging file folders just like you would in a real file cabinet.

Here are some examples . . .

• Referring Doctor Letters
• Lab Slips
• Original Forms from Paper Chart
• New Patient Forms
• Health History Update (of course if you read my blog you know that I love the Questionnaire module for HHX)
• Consent Forms
• Pre-Op Forms

So how do you edit the category types? Open the document center > setup > document types, then you can edit the existing names and/or create new ones. Create verbiage that your team will understand and will make it easier to find information.

NOTE: If you are using the feature that sends a virtual copy of the patient billing statement to the document center, make sure you keep the Billing Statements line item at the top of the list.

It's the little things . . .

It’s the little things that matter.  I hear that statement all the time being out in the

dental industry working with dental practices from all over the country. I love it when I show clients something and their eyes light up because they now know something that is so simple but makes such a huge impact on their day.

Dentrix is by far the most comprehensive and feature-rich practice management software in the industry and this is why it is the leading software for dentists.  However, when a keystroke or menu maneuver helps you do something better, faster and easier, it is HUGE.

Here are some of the top “Ah-Ha” moments I have seen over my career as a certified Dentrix trainer.

• Printing the full day of Route Slips or sorting them.  When I walk into an office and I see in the Batch Processor 30-60 single Route Slips being printed, I know this office does not know how to print out the whole day at one time.  There are two ways to accomplish this . . .
• Office manager > Reports > Lists > Daily Appointment List > check mark Patient Route Slips and send to the Batch.  From this menu, you can also sort by provider or operatory.
• You can also print the Route Slips within the Daily Huddle Report.
• Filter the Office Journal.  If you have been reading my blog, you know how much I love the office journal and I recommend all teams use it for admin communication with patients.  However, I find that a lot of offices refuse to use it because it takes so long to load.  Good news! You can filter your office journal so it will load less information and speed it up.  Open the office journal and click on View and then Filters.  Here you can select only the information you want to list in your view and you can select a starting date so it doesn’t look back to the beginning of time.
• Lock your computer with a CTRL + ALT + DEL and select LOCK COMPUTER when you leave your workstation. This way, you do not have to close down all your Dentrix windows to secure your computer.

Let me know what some of your “Ah-Ha” moments are.  I would love to hear your stories and quick tips to share.  You can comment  on this post or email me directly.

The Thriving Dentist with Gary Takacs - podcast

Practice management software is a critical element in every thriving practice. Yet many Dentists and Team Members are only using a small fraction of the capabilities of their practice management software. In this Thriving Dentist Show, Gary interviews his friend Dayna Johnson on specific tips to optimize your dental practice management software. Dayna is an authority on this subject and passionate about helping her colleagues. In this interview, Gary and Dayna discuss; Why many dental offices are still using a paper chart, the four specific benefits of converting to digital records, the three key elements of a successful paperless transition, important security tips, a fool proof back up system and the five most important statistics that every office should monitor with their practice management software.

CLICK HERE to be directed to the podcast

Everything Dental Blog - June 2016

The Secret Weapon of every dental office is their practice management software. The big secret is how it is used or underutilized. There are many good systems available to the dental community but most dentists only use a fraction of their utilities capabilities. Looking toward the future, dentists must embrace the power and versatility of their practice management suite. The benefits of a robust PMS can help them become more efficient and even more profitable. Whether you are a solo practitioner or a large group, practice efficiency and seamless technology integration is the goal!

If you assess the business acumen of independent solo dental practices across the USA you will find these four business styles. These styles address leadership, management style and degree of confidence. There is a direct correlation between leadership type and operational efficiency as well as PMS competency and offices that track their key production numbers.

CLICK HERE to continue reading my interview with Jack Abrams from The Abrams Report courtesy of the Everything Dental Blog.

What is the difference between the WebSync and the eSync?

Doctor asks his front desk manager, Tina, “What is that spinning globe thing that runs on my computer at 4 p.m. every day?” Tina replies, “I have no idea, I just abort it when it comes up. It’s so annoying.” The doctor then asks, “Is it something with Dentrix?” and Tina says “Yeah, but not sure what it does.”

Is this a conversation you have had in your practice? Let me clear the air so you can understand what exactly that spinning globe thing is. There are two applications that run on your computers every day, the WebSync and the eSync. They do completely different things, but the one thing they have in common is that they keep many of your eServices running smoothly and up to date. Here are the things you must know about this. . .

• ·        WebSync sends information out. When you use some of the Dentrix eServices, there is information that is sent out to the Dentrix servers so it can be accessed from certain applications. For example, if you are using Dentrix Mobile, the Websync will send patient information, prescription history, and bits of your appointment book to the Dentrix servers so you can access it from anywhere. The WebSync checks your appointment book to see what patients are scheduled so it can upload that information to the Insurance Eligibility feature, the Kiosk for electronic forms, and to the Communication Manager for appointment reminders using email, text, and postcards.
• ·        The eSync brings information back in. If you are using the Questionnaire module for electronic forms and patients are filling out forms via a link from your website or iPad, then the eSync brings that electronic form into your Dentrix software so you can attach it to the patient record. The eSync also brings in those appointment confirmations from the eCentral Communication Manager and changes the status of the appointment to confirm.
• ·        The WebSync runs once a day on one computer. You may want to go around to all your workstations and check the setup in the WebSync Wizard. Click on the DXWeb toolbar > click on the wrench or gear > click on WebSync Wizard and, on the second page in the upper right corner, check “Do not run WebSync automatically.” This will turn it off on this workstation. Then set it to run automatically from one computer (I recommend one of the front office computers that will stay on 24/7).
• ·        The eSync runs in real time 24/7. When a patient fills out an electronic form or clicks the button to confirm their appointment, the eSync recognizes that right away and sends the information to your Dentrix software immediately.

Both the WebSync and the eSync require for you to keep them updated so you always have the latest features and security updates to make sure your software is running to its fullest potential. If you click on the eSync (big red e) and open the Plug In Manager, there is a tab for Available Updates, this is where you will see any updates that need to be done. The WebSync should download any new updates if it is running each day.

I hope this helps clear up any questions or confusion about the differences between eSync and WebSync. Communications is a key component to all dental practices now days and it is important for you to maintain the integrity of the information.

2016 goal setting and planning . . . add this to your list

This week is filled with office holiday parties, baskets of holiday goodies being delivered from your specialists, and making sure you have your out-of-office emergency messages all set up just in case a patient needs to reach your doctor. When you return back to your office after the holiday, you will be looking ahead to 2016 with setting new goals, mapping out your appointment book for a more stress-free working day, and looking at new strategies to attract new patients. There is one thing I am asking you to add to your list of planning for 2016 … and that is to please bring your office up to HIPAA compliance.

When I am working with an office or providing a complimentary office assessment, I am still amazed at how many practices are out of compliance. You cannot continue to ignore the three requirements that were mandated by the HIPAA Security Rule in 2005. Yes, it has been more than 10 years since the HIPAA Security Rule was mandated and it is still grossly neglected. There are three questions I want you to ask your doctor or office manager.

1. Where is your office’s risk assessment documented and what is the results?
2. Where is your office’s customized HIPAA Security Manual?
3. When is your next annual office HIPAA training scheduled?

If you cannot get the answers to these three questions, you are out of compliance with the HIPAA Security Rule, which could result in your practice receiving a HIPAA violation. I realize you do not hear of many HIPAA violations, but I am trying to protect you. Becoming compliant is not difficult … just get it done.

I have written on this topic many times and preach it with all my clients. CLICK HERE for more information.

All I want for Christmas is a new iWatch

Is a new iWatch on your Christmas list for this year or are you already wearing your iWatch wondering what to do with it? I have a couple of suggestions for you . . . use it to help you manage your time and patients at your dental practice.

Imagine this . . . what if you could get a little buzz on your wrist from your iWatch letting you know that patient in room #1 is ready for an exam and you could check her medical alerts before you even walk into the room? What if you could then speak a command into your iWatch and it would automatically launch the patient’s most recent pano onto the monitor? Using these new apps designed around the efficiency of the dental practice gets me all excited … and it should you too.

I have learned about two new products specifically designed around the iWatch and helping you manage your time around the operatory. Below you will see a video interview I did on a company I spoke with at a recent dental meeting and a link to another product that I absolutely love. If you are interested in this technology, research both products and schedule a demo to look at each one.

 

 

 

CLICK HERE to check out Simplifeye

CLICK HERE to check out OperaDDS

Why do I need encrypted email?

Let’s picture a postcard. This mode of communication is perfect for documenting your latest trip laden with landmark pictures on the front and a simple “Wish you were here” written on the back. Anyone can flip over the postcard, read your sentiments. You’d never write anything too personal knowing this postcard can be an open book. No need to safeguard this innocent letter.

Now imagine if it has your social security number written on the back under your name. Not so innocent anymore! This is exactly what an email is. A regular email is open for anyone to view while in transit to its recipient. Now imagine a letter, duct taped and carried by an armored van to the recipient. This is an encrypted email.

As a Covered Entity, you are responsible, by HIPAA law, for safeguarding your patient’s data.

Anytime electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) is being sent in an email, HIPAA recommends implementing procedures to ensure secure transmission and storage. The easiest way to do this is to utilize an encrypted email system.

Ideally, look for a provider that offers the option to send regular vs. encrypted mail. For example with Aspida Mail  it is triggered by a keyword, encrypt in the subject or body of an email. If that keyword is omitted, all emails flow as usual.

Additionally, if you are receiving ePHI to your email, verify you are implementing secure storage procedures. Typically, (free) Gmail, Aol & Yahoo Mail do not store securely.

Additional Tips:

• Opening Emails
• Use a mail solution that has antivirus and a robust spam filter enabled.
• Inspect all email messages thoroughly, including the senders address.
• Do not open any email that looks suspicious. If you do not know the sender, treat it as suspicious email.
• Sending Emails
• Confirm the email address with which you are sending information. 
• Do not put any ePHI in the subject line of an encrypted email – this information is still transmitted through an unsecure environment.

By familiarizing yourself and your team about these email procedures, you’ve taken the first steps to protection. The next step would be to figure out what works best for your practice and come up with a plan for implementation. And don’t forget, documentation of all policies and procedures is key!

 

CLICK HERE for more info on Aspida email solutions

About the Author:

Laura Miller is Compliance Manager of Aspida, has quickly established itself as an industry leader in providing compliance security products and services for healthcare providers.

Top 5 things to bring the miracle of technology to life

During my 22 years in dentistry, I have been both the trainer and the trainee when it comes to implementing new technology in the dental practice. People who know me see me as kind of a computer geek.

The satisfaction of getting a new computer, network or piece of technology to work was the thrill of the hunt. It’s amazing sometimes that it all works together.

The miracle that all the technology works together is actually not a miracle at all—it takes planning and professional help. It doesn’t just happen. There are five critical things to consider when purchasing a new piece of technology, whether it is for the clinical or business side of your practice. These five things will not only help bring this miracle to life but also make sure your team is as efficient as it can be:

CLICK HERE to continue reading my full article on DPR

Protect your livelihood and your computers from viruses

If you are like me and read up on the latest news in the dental industry and keep up on breaking stories then you know that many dental practices have been violated recently by the Crypticwall or the Crypticlocker virus.  This virus can be devastating to the practice and embarrassing to you and your team.  My friend and Dentrix Product Manager, Brad Royer, wrote a great response to this topic in the Dental Town forum and I have his permission to share it with all of you.

These viruses do not just hold Dentrix for ransom, they hold your entire computer and other systems on the network ransom.  They are known as ransomware.  The most widely known example from a few years ago was called cryptolocker (this particular version is almost eradicated); however, there have been many other copy cats and other versions that have since been created.

Please see the following information on ways to prevent your office from being affected by this malware.

Security Tips for Small Businesses Regarding Internet and Email Usage

The following information provides tips for small businesses to follow in order to help avoid potential data compromise due to cyber threats from the internet while browsing the web or using email.

Email spam or junk mail is usually unsolicited email that is sent to a large number of recipients. These emails are usually irrelevant or inappropriate and may contain malware or viruses that can infect your computer. And in some cases, they could infect an entire network of computers. All one has to do is open up an unfamiliar or suspicious email and a virus can then immediately load on your computer.

The same goes for visiting certain web sites that contain malware or viruses. Simply visiting a popular social media site and then clicking an advertisement could result in a virus being installed on your computer. Spam, junk mail, viruses, and malware could lead to data loss, data breach, damage to systems, and high replacement and repair expenses. However, most of these threats can be avoided by educating your staff and implementing some basic protocols.

Security Tips

• Do not share your business email accounts except for with customers, patients, and colleagues.
• In most cases, in order to receive malicious emails, spammers first need to know your email address. Therefore, it is recommended that your business email addresses not be shared with anyone except your patients, your customers, and your colleagues.
• Sometimes it is necessary to use your business email to sign on to a web site. Be sure that if you use your business email address on a web site, only use it on a legitimate web site that you are familiar with. And make sure that this usage is for business purposes only. Unfortunately, even legitimate web sites will often share your email address with third-parties. However, the more you can reduce the exposure of your business email addresses to the web, the safer your email will be.
• Do not post your business email account on the public internet such as posting on your business web site or on forums.
• Harvesting bots are special software designed to obtain email addresses from public data on the web. Once emails are harvested, the emails are then added to lists for sending spam emails and other threats. In order to help avoid having your business email address harvested it is a good idea to not post your business email address on your company web site or on a web forum for the public to see. Also, make sure that your email address does not show up in your signature on a forum or as a link within a guest book. If the public can see your email address, then it is likely that a harvesting bot can see it also.
• Make sure that your company web site has some sort of security method in place to hide your email from harvesting bots while allowing your web site visitors to communicate with you.
• Do not use your business email address to sign up for promotions, drawings, or other marketing gimmicks.
• Sharing your business email to sign up for anything free or for any special promotion is likely a method for a spammer to collect email addresses. Some of the signup emails or signup pages can even contain malware or viruses that immediately load on your computer.
• Do not open unfamiliar or suspicious emails; delete them.
• When checking email, do not click on unfamiliar or suspicious emails or attachments. Instead, immediately delete them. Some suspicious emails when clicked can add your email address to a list, or even worse, install malware or a virus.
• Also, be careful with unsubscribe links in certain emails. Although many unsubscribe links are legitimate, some unsubscribe links within suspicious or unfamiliar emails could contain links to further threats.
• Microsoft Exchange users should implement SPAM Firewall services.
• If you host your own Microsoft Exchange server, you need to implement a Spam Firewall service such as Barracuda. This type of service will help reduce spam emails arriving to your inbox.
• Web based email users, only use legitimate email services rated high for security.
• If you use web based email for your business, make sure to only use a reputable service such as Outlook.com or Gmail that contain built in security measures to help prevent spam and viruses.
• Restrict email usage.
• Email usage should be for business purposes only and should be conducted by approved and secure email methods. Limit email usage to only select employees who will be responsible for following the proper protocols. Personal email on business systems should not be allowed.
• Be suspicious of email attachments.
• Before opening an email attachment verify that you recognize the sender, the name of the attachment, and the body of the email. If anything seems out of place do not open the attachment. Delete.
• Restrict web surfing.
• Minimize the number of users in the office that are allowed to surf the internet. This can be accomplished by implementing and enforcing rules for usage. Only surf the web for business purposes while only visiting legitimate web sites.
• Systems that do not need web browsing can have the web browsing disabled either through the computer settings or by changing the settings within the firewall.
• Perhaps implement web filtering services. These services can allow some web browsing to occur while filtering potentially dangerous sites or sites that waste time and productivity of employees.
• The more systems with a web browser that is filtered or disabled, the safer the network will be.
• Personal web browsing by employees should not be allowed on business computers. Although visiting social media sites and other personal web sites may be common, this is the leading cause for businesses acquiring viruses on the network. Make it the protocol that employees must web surf on their own personal devices such as phones or tablets.
• Implement email encryption.
• Before sending an email to a customer, patient, or colleague, consider encrypting the email so that it cannot be read or captured by a hacker while in transit. There are many third-party services that offer encryption.
• Also, products such as Adobe Acrobat allow one to encrypt a single document at a time that is password protected. The document can then be attached to an email and then sent. The recipient only needs to know a password to unlock the encryption and then view the documents once received. This is a basic and inexpensive method for encryption.
• Get rid of old email accounts if they receive too much spam and open new email accounts.
• If your business is using an old email account that receives excessive SPAM and junk mail, maybe it is time to retire the old email address and create a new one. Be sure to not share the new email address with anyone except customers, patients, colleagues, or legitimate web sites for business purposes only. This may require updating or changing business cards, flyers, or your company web site.
• Do not allow employees to check personal email on business computers.
• So far as personal email, there is a very simple protocol for employees to follow. Do not allow personal email to be checked on business computers. Employees should use their personal devices such as phones or personal tablets to check personal email.
• Do not allow employees to connect their personal devices such as phones or tablets to the business network.
• Make sure that employees are not connecting their personal devices to the business network. The only exception would be is if you have a secure firewall in place with a separate guest network. The guest network must be firewalled from the business network, never allowing communication between the two.
• If you do not have this sort of secure and separate guest network, then do not allow personal devices to connect to the business network.
• Run updates on all systems on a regular basis.
• Run Windows updates on a regular basis. Be sure to run these updates during business downtime and be prepared for the updates to take quite a bit of time to install. There could possibly be multiple reboots involved. Once completed, be sure to test all systems, test all database software, and test healthcare devices to make sure they are in good working condition before the next business day. Windows updates cannot protect against all possible attacks, but they can help to make your systems more secure.
• Make sure you have up-to-date antivirus software on all systems.
• This includes all workstations and servers. Antivirus needs to be active and up-to-date. Although, antivirus cannot protect against all possible attacks, it can help to keep your network safer by addressing possible viruses and malware.
• Be sure to always have a current backup of your data and an old backup of your data.
• Each backup should be on separate, secure media. You should have multiple backup sets that represent multiple restore dates. Some backup sets should be new and some should be older. That way you will have more choices of dates to restore from. For example, one backup from yesterday, another backup from two days ago, another backup from three days ago, and a fourth backup from two weeks ago, etcetera. The more backup sets that are available to choose from in a restore situation the better the odds are of restoring the system to the best possible state in a disaster recovery scenario. Multiple backup media and multiple backup methods are encouraged.

Brad Royer

Dentrix Product Manager

Henry Schein Practice Solutions

 

Expand your Medical Alert Notes with G6 and Questionnaries

When I first saw all the new and exciting features with Dentrix G6, I was eager to learn how to apply them into my everyday workflow. There is a new feature that enhances something I have been teaching for a long time and that is the health history update. If you have been reading my blog for a while, you know that I love using the Questionnaire Module for updating the health history update because it is a secure location, keeps a chronological history, and is super easy to use.

Watch my video to learn about this cool new feature.

 

 

If you are new to Questionnaires, please read these articles to learn more.

Creating a form - CLICK HERE
New Patient Forms - CLICK HERE
Documentation - CLICK HERE
 

Engage patients with technology

In my March newsletter *, I talked about implementing electronic forms and patient engagement. With dental practices moving towards a digital environment, we have to look at ways to engage our patients in a digital world, create better patient experiences, and connect with them using new technology. There are many ways we can enhance our patient experience even for our older patients. In the most recent Pew Research study * on “Older Adults and Technology Use,” it finds that (for the first time) six out of 10 seniors are using the internet and 77% have a cell phone. If your office is equipped with computers in the treatment rooms, there are some things you can do in your practice right now to step up your level of patient engagement.

• Forget about handing the patient a clipboard with a paper form when you can sit the patient down in your treatment room, pull the computer monitor right up to the patient, and say, “Here is the information we had documented from last visit. Does this all look accurate?” Patient forms, health history, and consent forms should be a conversation between the clinician and the patient, not a form you scan into the computer.
• Have personal information about your patient right at your fingertips. Even though I help dental offices go paperless, I do like Route Slips or some kind of communication form for the team. On the Dentrix Route Slip or Patient Visit Form, you can enter personal information (vacations, hobbies, pets, etc.) in the Patient Note box and it will print on these forms. If you have to bury your face in the computer to find information, you will break that relationship with your patient.
• Set up a way to communicate with your patients, family members, caregivers, referring doctors, and physicians via e-mail or the Internet. You can write language into your HIPAA manual and include it in your HIPAA Privacy Rule regarding how your office communicates electronically with other parties. Put security measures in place so you can take advantage of online communication.
• Send the patient treatment plan estimate to the Document Center so it can be sent electronically to a parent, caregiver, or to the patient. Many patients now are asking, “Can you just e-mail that to me?”

The future of the dental practice is “information now.” This concept of “information now” does not have to be technology first and patient second. The two can coexist.

* Please email me at dayna@raedentalmanagement.com if you would like a copy of the full study or would like to sign up for my newsletter.

Dentrix G6 launch . . . . be amazed!

I had the pleasure of talking with Brad Royer, the Dentrix product manager, about the release of Dentrix G6.  The launch date is scheduled on April 30, 2015 during the California Dental Association meeting.  Stop by the Dentrix booth during CDA to see all of the amazing features but you can watch our interview now to hear about the highlights.

Dentrix G6 demonstrates our commitment to listen to our customers. We have been gathering customer feedback via our online suggestion box, social medial polls, and industry conferences. One of the messages we have heard is that you are looking for easier upgrades and thoroughly tested software. We believe that Dentrix G6 addresses this request.

We are also committed to providing new and improved features and functionality to our Dentrix customers on a consistent basis. With Dentrix G6, we are pleased to offer customers exceptional new tools, features, and functionality.  Brad Royer, Dentrix Product Manager

Patient reviews and Family messenging . . . Whoo Hoo!

Electronic correspondence such as e-mail and text messaging has become one of the most sought-after services in the dental offices. I am often asked, “Who do you use for sending e-mails to your patients?” My response is, “I use the Dentrix eCentral program.” What I love about the eCentral program is how much control I have over the customization and it’s integrated with my Dentrix software. Now eCentral has enhanced its product by adding three amazing features.

I know, for me, reviews are extremely important when I am choosing a restaurant or nail salon because I want to know other people’s experiences. The same goes for the dental office and that is why eCentral is now offering reviews as part of the new patient post-appointment survey. Patients submitting a favorable review will be prompted to post their review to Facebook, Google+, and Yelp. Then, in the patient review dashboard, you can see which reviews were automatically posted to your website and add or remove reviews based on a more detailed examination of the content. The dashboard also provides an overview of your practice rating and other useful statistics.

One of the questions I would get from practices is, “How can we just send mom one message for all the kids’ appointments?” In the past, I would have to regretfully say it wasn’t an option, but now, thanks to all your requests, the development team has made it a reality. This will definitely eliminate a lot of the confusion with multiple reminders for multiple family members and the entire family can be confirmed with just one reply. Whoo-hoo!

People are using their mobile phones more and more as their only source of communication so Dentrix eCentral has optimized the e-mail reminder to be more mobile-friendly. It is easier to read and interact with the reminder with a mobile device.

I am extremely excited to announce to you these new feature enhancements. Since I am no longer working in a practice, I will have to live vicariously through you to enjoy these new features. Enjoy!

For more information on the eCentral suite of services, CLICKHERE

 

ePrescribe . . . eKnowledge . . . eAccess . . . EHR

Our dental world is slowly changing from a world of pens and paper to a world of clicking and typing. Until now, the only state to mandate Electronic Health Records (EHRs) is Minnesota. However, many states will be following in its footsteps in the very near future. Having a paperless chart is more than just typing in the clinical notes or painting pictures on the tooth chart. It is about being able to coordinate your patient care with other providers and sharing information within the medical and dental communities. Even though this accessibility of patient information is still evolving, we as dental providers can start using what we have available right now.

Dentrix has partnered with Allscripts® to bring you electronic prescriptions. Being able to partner with your patient’s pharmacist will give you the ability to know potentially dangerous drug-to-drug interactions, drug allergies, dosage errors, and other problems that can occur with written or phoned-in prescriptions. This is what EHR is all about. Providing better patient care is why we do what we do.

If you have read any of my other blogs about going paperless, you know how much I stress efficiency. With ePrescribe, there are many features to create more efficiency.

• Speed the medication process when you send and track electronic prescriptions with any participating pharmacy
• Provide a seamless patient experience when you store pharmacy favorites by practice or patient for automatic prescription fulfillment before the patient leaves your office
• Improve patient safety with automatic drug interaction checking, dosage checks, adverse reaction checks, and duplicate therapy checks
• Access any information reported through the Surescripts network by other providers
• Simplify prescription renewals by receiving and managing refill requests from pharmacies online, with accessible patient medication history

ePrescribe is available now in all but four states (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana). There is no download or hardware required. It is a subscription model that is a web-based solution for your practice to send prescriptions electronically to retail and mail order pharmacies directly from Dentrix. The only requirement within Dentrix is that you must enable secure passwords to use it and be using Dentrix G5 or later.

CLICK HERE for more information or if you are using G5 click on the ePrescribe icon on the toolbar.

CLICK HERE if your office needs HIPAA training or a Risk Analysis.

Success with your dental software implementation and training

 

Dental Software Advisor’s podcast series focuses on software technology topics relevant to dental users. In this interview with Dayna Johnson of Rae Dental Management, a longtime industry implementation and training expert, we have a frank discussion of software implementation ands how to build acceptance and increase rewards for using appropriate technology.

 

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One of the key topics during software implementation is to identify fears around software implementation and work to figure out what can be shifted to improve efficiency and reduce frustration. Solutions come from incorporating many different strategies.

 

For any dental practice implementing new technology, this discussion will cover common issues, frequent mistakes, and how to make the process easier and more complete. Efficiency, consistency and protection are the mantra Dayna Johnson uses for successful software implementations.

Don't let your senior citizen patients hold you back

When I was looking at transitioning my first office from paper charts to digital (of course it was the office I was working at) the one thing that concerned me the most was the reaction of my patients.  How would my patients take to filling out their forms from home on a computer or confirming their appointments from their mobile phones?   My office is on an island with a large population of retired and elderly people and 32% of our patient base was over the age of 61 at the time I started the transition.  I look back now and wonder what I was so worried about.  In fact, according to a April 2012 study by Pew Research Group 53% of people over the age of 65 use the internet or email, and of those who are using the internet, 82% say they use it on a daily basis.  Also, seven out of 10 people in this age group own a cell phone, which is up 57% from 2010. Even with my office being well below the national average we are having extreme success with electronic forms and correspondence.  Continue Reading . . .

Ready to see what financial security should be?

Dr. Don Lewis, Jr. DDS, CFE 

Recently I interviewed my friend Dr. Don Lewis at the Business of Dentistry conference and he shared some exciting information about his application that integrates with Dentrix G5.  It is amazing!  I believe it can help your practice.  Today, Dr. Don Lewis shares some questions and answers that will give you some insight into this product.

Donald P. Lewis, Jr., DDS, CFE is a Diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (AAOMS) and is currently in private practice as a leading oral and maxillofacial surgeon in Cleveland, Ohio.

 

Q.  What have you learned from developing Practice SafeGuard?

 

A.   I suffered a major financial loss from embezzlement in the 90s. It was personally devastating and there was a huge gap in the resources I had to fight my case. I became a CFE and began lecturing to thousands of dentists who had the same fears and nowhere to go. Earlier this year I lectured in a room of 200+ dentists and polled the audience - literally 72% of them thought they were victims of fraud. With my team, I've finally been able to develop an amazing solution. We've found scary amounts of potential loss, in the MILLIONS, in our few Early Adopter practices. This is unacceptable in any business. The most fascinating thing we've learned is, doctors can lose as much or more to entry errors as fraud. We know mistakes are not crime, and we don't want to scare people with our message, but the losses are real, and they are preventable. With Practice SafeGuard, my case would have been open and shut. We're so excited to see what Practice SafeGuardcan do for every doctor battling unacceptable losses.

Q.  How does Practice SafeGuard work?

 

 

A.  It installs in a few minutes and begins analyzing the Dentrix G5 Ledger history. Then, it alerts you to extreme and unusual transactions, and shows you behavior patterns and business metrics in a practice performance dashboard. You can get alerts in up to 3 inboxes on any device you carry, which makes it very easy to respond and resolve issues instantly. It's really just a few minutes a day once you get going. When you can respond instantly, you feel more in control of your financial flow. Best of all, getting a call about a transaction they entered minutes ago means that your staff is very aware of your involvement, which drastically cuts down on the opportunity for crime or negligence. We call it "creating the perception of protection". Practice SafeGuard is the only thing that does it automatically, and Dentrix G5 is the first platform to offer it.

 

Q.  What are the top 3 reasons for G5 users to install it?

 

 

A.  Beyond the obvious benefits of any web tool, the value for G5 users is very simple: This is the best possible kind of financial control. It's fast to ramp up, it ensures that your current sunk costs (Dentrix, staff, audit teams, trainers) actually cost you less, because they're all more accurate, and it provides detailed transaction documentation that doctors can't get anywhere else. It's peace of mind for a few bucks a month and seconds a day.