How a New Jersey manager turned layoffs and a new time clock requirement into actual staff benefits – December

More nightmare staffers: the excuser, the downplayer, and the attention getter – October

For effective and fair reviews, use few numbers but plenty of judgment – October

Lots of ways to make managment easier: good hiring tactics, understanding personalities, motivation ideas, morale builders, performance improvers, perqs that go a long way, and how to win staff’s respect – August

How to say ‘your performance is bad’ or ‘you don’t deserve a raise’ or ‘you’re being laid off’ – August

Mississippi manager sets up a win/win way to put a fast end to personal internet use – July

How to address poor behavior with a short conversation that’s not confrontational – May

A quick way to find out what opinions staff have about their manager – May

Louisiana manager uses the reward points from the office’s credit cards to provide good staff perqs – May

Dealing with more problem staffers: the blamer, the cryer, and the poor listener – April

Georgia manager ends the tension with silly solutions to the everyday staff complaints – April

Why the office needs a job description for every position and how to get them all written – March

What to say to the staffer whose work and behavior don’t meet expectations – March

Illinois manager gives staff MAGIC wands (‘Making A Great Impression Counts’) to recognize top patient service – February

Michigan manager asks for marketing and customer service recommendations at every staff meeting – February

At-will employment can die quickly and in the sneakiest ways – December

When the economy goes down, claims crop up: don’t give a good reference for an agreement not to sue; don’t ask a staffer to resign instead of being fired; be wary of
disciplining long-term staffers; and stay away from zero- tolerance policies – November

Age discrimination risk increases drastically as the economy tightens – October

Wage and hour issues can slip in quietly and bring about tremendous fines – August

Investigating an EEOC complaint is serious business; don’t overlook any of these items – July

New employment law risks: family duty discrimination, changing a staffer’s job description, requiring physician notes for absences, and denying vacation requests – June

Two new dangers to watch out for: disability discrimination and retaliation for protected activities – April

Essential office etiquette for the disabled patient – February

A little psychology: How to handle an angry patient and not get sued for malpractice – February

These are the articles that appeared in Medical Office Manager during the last 12 months. If you have questions about any of these, please contact us at info@ardmorepublishing.com.

For safe firing, explain exactly what is happening; some people don’t realize they’ve been fired – May

When firing a staffer, the first concern is safety – both legal and physical – February

The key to a good hire is a good resume and good body language – January

Medical Office Manager carries a regular coding column titled ‘ICD-9-CM and CPT coding update.’ Here are the topics covered during 2011:

– CPT’s new 2012 updates start with revisions to the E/M codes – December

– The 2012 ICD-9 updates from the genitourinary system to the V codes – November

– The 2012 ICD-9 updates from the respiratory system to the digestive system – October

– The 2012 ICD-9 updates from infections to the circulatory system – September

– Alzheimer’s codes plus two related updates – August

– Coding menopause and its symptoms– July

– How acute MIs will be coded under ICD-10 – June

– Summer coding: insect bites and Lyme disease – May

– Coding arthritis and hip and knee replacements – April

– The new vaccination codes, otitis media, ABS – March

– CPT’s updates from radiology to the end – February

– CPT’s 2011 updates in the surgery section – January

A complete list of the CPT updates for 2012 – November

ICD-10 dates and facts to be aware of – August

Last-minute updates to ICD-9-CM bring 43 new codes – July

A complete list of the ICD-9-CM updates for 2012 – June

Who can do the counseling for the vaccine codes? – April

ICD-10 is a giant change with no room for error – March

Five points about ICD-10 to remember – March

How to code welcome exams and wellness visits – February

The ACOs start organizing January 1 and operating April 1; health care reform begins in earnest – December

The near future: one bundled payment for both hospital and physician services – September

An outline and explanation of the four types of bundled payments – September

The new terminology for the new hospital/ physician bundled payment system – September

All the facts about those Accountable Care Organizations (a MOM mini seminar) – July

Accountable Care Organizations are at the starting gate; they’re the real beginning of health care reform – April

21 good ways to get better patient collections – all of them simple, all of them easy – September

New Jersey manager gets more than $5,000 in savings just by asking vendors ‘can you match this?’ – August

Colorado manager saves big money by investing in IT support training – June

The keys to better revenues are a collection letter at 30 days plus basic procedures: outline copay and deductible at scheduling, limit payment plans to six payments, get approval for write-offs, check EOB amounts, set time
each week for insurance collection calls, and hire enough staff to get the collection work done properly – January

Any medical office can be a wide-open target for computer hackers (and the patient information is unbelievably valuable) – November

A bit of Q&A on where e-scripting is now and where it’s going to be later – August

Medicare gives a few more e-scripting exemptions and more time to file for them – June

June 30 is the final day for e-scripting! Claims have to be filed by July 31 – May

E-script by June 30 or don’t get paid; payments for 2012 and 2013 are at risk – March

The e-prescribing visit codes for 2011 – February

Don’t forget e-prescribing; only six months to avoid the pay cuts it carries – January

Enrollment revalidation is necessary, but not till Medicare says it’s time – October

A new pay cut is a-cooking: the value-based modifier will take a bow in 2015 – September

The who, what, and how much of the new 10% bonus for primary care physicians – May

Clarification on that one-year deadline for filing Medicare claims – March

An outline of the new face-to-face visit requirement for home health – February

A face-to-face visit is now required for home health care certification – January

Medicare gives a 10% bonus for primary care services • plus 10% to surgeons • plus wellness exam pay – January

What to do when a patient is exposed to a needlestick – from a staffer! – October

Staff use of social networks is a danger never even dreamed of four years ago – April

Online job applications carry serious ADA risks – February

Maryland manager increases the revenues by focusing the marketing on patient comfort – November

Indiana manager expands the marketing to billboards and TV and brings in a number of new patients – September

A short checklist to see where the office is now standing on Version 5010 – November

Last chance! Change over to HIPAA 5010 by January 1 or don’t get paid! – October

No time to waste on HIPAA’s 5010 standards; everybody’s deadline is January 1 – July

Two not-so-easy HIPAA issues: notifying patients when a vendor gets private information and protecting the record when a staffer sues a patient – March

Ask a departing staffer ‘why are you leaving?’ and expect some surprisingly valuable answers – October

Colorado manager improves overall operations by meeting with the doctors every week – October

EHR statistics show that only 10% of doctors are in line for the bonuses – February

Doctors can – and should – register now for the EHR meaningful use bonuses – January

Here’s where to find certified EHR software – January

The key to being a successful manager is assertion, not aggression – December

Surviving the bully doctor: do it carefully lest somebody get fired – December

The tricks to weathering office political issues – November

A good manager has to delegate. No human can be in charge of everything – October

In the professional world, looks count for both the doctors and the manager – September

Here’s how to detect a staffer’s lie – July

How to be a strong manager even when the doctors want to control everything – July

Want to stay employed? Stay neutral. Never join forces with a doctor – May

How to make a presentation that wins the respect of the medical staff – April

How to move from staffer to manager and become the boss to old friends – January