A demographic shift is looming, and we aren’t as prepared as we think.
Colorado has long been revered for its stunning landscapes and outdoor pursuits, earning a reputation as a state with a youthful and active population – but, we are aging.
By 2050, Colorado’s number of older adults is expected to more than double to 1.7 million, second only to Alaska in the U.S. for the fastest-growing population of people over 65. Nationwide, the 85 and older population is projected to more than double
Read More
Health IT & Digital Health-Opinion | Op-Eds | Guest Columns | Analysis, Insights - HIT Consultant
The Case for a Credential Wallet in Healthcare Staffing: Increasing Efficiency, Compliance & Profit
Healthcare staffing, an essential pillar of the U.S. healthcare system, involves a myriad of entities, including healthcare providers, facilities, staffing agencies, credentialing bodies and regulatory agencies. At the heart of this process lies the critical function of credentialing — the rigorous verification of clinician qualifications–and how the system is reimbursed. As the industry grapples with a profound staffing shortfall, all stakeholders in the healthcare industry need to focus on
Read More
The Role of Qualified Medical Interpreters in Achieving Section 1557 Healthcare Compliance
For the last decade, Section 1557 has been at the center of many changes and today, it continues to be as the Biden administration is working to take giant steps towards restoring and strengthening some civil rights protections for people in many health-related programs and activities that receive funding from the federal government.
Section 1557, known as the “Health Care Rights Law,” is the main nondiscrimination provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). It prohibits discrimination in
Read More
Digitizing and Streamlining Surgeon Preferences Improves Operational Efficiency and Patient Safety
In the dynamic world of healthcare, preference cards serve as crucial tools that capture a surgeon’s specific needs and preferences for each type of surgical procedure they perform. These cards typically outline the equipment, instruments, and supplies required for a particular procedure, providing a personalized roadmap for surgical teams to follow. By detailing these specifications, preference cards help streamline surgical planning, foster improved communication among the operating room (OR)
Read More
Automation Fills Gaps Left by Revenue Cycle Talent Shortage
Healthcare providers are feeling the industry’s talent shortage in their administrative functions as well as clinical areas. One case in point: revenue cycle management. In a recent study, 63% of healthcare providers reported an inability to fill key revenue management roles. Reduced revenues and cash reserves are almost inevitable when providers don’t have sufficient staff to follow up on claims, manage appeals and help patients understand their financial responsibilities and
Read More
Expectation vs. Reality: Improving the Patient Payment Experience
If you’ve ever worked behind the scenes at a provider organization, you likely gained a deep understanding of what makes medical practices tick, giving you the ability to make fairly accurate assumptions about how patients will probably behave in different scenarios. However, when it comes to the patient payment experience, inevitably some patients respond differently than expected.
Seasoned healthcare workers have likely experienced a number of common misconceptions about patients’
Read More
Will Healthcare Let AI Fix The Slow-Motion Crisis of Physician Burnout?
When I ask primary care physicians about their biggest problems today, they share the excruciating pain they experience as the American healthcare system pushes them towards administrative work rather than letting them focus on true patient care and clinical excellence.
Some doctors described themselves as "square pegs in a round hole" for bridling under the system’s bureaucratic constraints. Others feel stuck in a "transactional world" of recordkeeping. They yearn to spend more time
Read More
Making the Case for AI in Patient Experience and Education
As a physician, I’m captivated by artificial intelligence’s (AI) potential to revolutionize care, while simultaneously acknowledging the apprehensions that accompany such advancements — in particular the more topical large language models (LLMs) and generative AI.
Ready or not, there’s no question that AI will impact our industry; in fact, the market is expected to grow from $14.6 billion in 2023 to a staggering $102.7 billion in just five years.
An expanding array of use cases
In my
Read More
How Healthcare Organizations Can Defend Against Ransomware
There’s no denying it - the need for stronger cyber defense is urgent. More ransomware attacks targeted healthcare in 2022 than any other critical infrastructure sector, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). With attacks on healthcare negatively impacting patient care – including increased mortality rates - healthcare organizations must adopt proactive approaches to better protect their patients and sensitive information.
In the spring, the Multi-State Information
Read More
Will Value-Based Care Finally Fix EHRs Too?
In theory, electronic health records (EHRs) have the potential to transform the healthcare landscape. They were expected to provide a digital hub that would enable seamless communication and information sharing between providers, boost efficiency, improve the quality of care, and foster optimal patient and clinician experiences.
The reality, unfortunately, has not matched the possibilities.
While well-intentioned, the Federal Government’s 2011 Meaningful Use Mandate program—to
Read More
