Medigram - March 5, 2009 | Wisconsin Medical Society

NEWS BRIEFS

ProAssurance Wisconsin offers eligible members premium discount for EHR implementation

Society members with group medical professional liability insurance through ProAssurance Wisconsin Insurance Company (formerly PIC WISCONSIN) may be eligible for an additional 2.5 percent credit if their Electronic Health Records (EHR) system is accredited by the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT). This credit is available only to Society members who purchase this insurance through Wisconsin Medical Society Insurance Services, Inc. To apply for an EHR credit, a member’s group practice must complete an EHR authorization form, available here, and return it to Wisconsin Medical Society Insurance & Financial Services, Inc.

This form must be submitted by March 31 to receive the credit for policies with an effective date that falls between January 1 and May 31 of this year. Otherwise, the credit will not be applied until the insurance policy’s renewal date. Members whose policies have an effective date that falls after June 1 must submit the EHR authorization form at least 60 days before their renewal date. If this requirement is not met, the credit will be applied upon renewal of the policy.

For more information on the EHR credit, contact a Wisconsin Medical Society Insurance & Financial Services, Inc. agent or click here. To learn more about implementing an EHR system, click here.

Get up to speed at June 23 EHR Systems Fair

Implementing an Electronic Health Records (EHR) system—or making plans to do so—may be one of the most important tasks your practice tackles this year.

That’s why the Wisconsin Medical Society is sponsoring an EHR Systems Fair Tuesday, June 23 at the Holiday Inn in Fond du Lac. The fair will feature a variety of high-quality EHR system demonstrations, plus opportunities for visitors to ask questions and join discussion groups to share knowledge on this topic.

The Society has requested information from a number of companies to determine what qualities and features physicians are looking for in an EHR system. If a vendor approaches your practice regarding this request, feel free to direct them to Michelle Klagos, the Society's Quality & Efficiency Specialist. The Society’s goal is to provide practices with the information necessary for the practice to determine which system best meets its needs—and to facilitate for members this learning and decision-making process. For more information about EHRs, click here. And to help you prepare for the Fair, consider participating in one or both of our EHR teleconferences to learn more about health records’ high-tech transformation.

New Alliance PSAs target underage drinking

To encourage Wisconsin parents to stand up to underage drinking, the Wisconsin Medical Society Alliance (Alliance) has created two radio-ready public service announcements and two video public service announcements for its “Teen Drinking Is Not a Rite of Passage” public-health project.

The 60-second radio spots, which may be heard here and here, feature Wendy Lemkuil, a prosecutor in the Brown County district attorney’s office who is also the wife of a family medicine doctor and a mother of three. Her down-to-earth appeal—“Don’t be the cool parent. Be the real parent.”—puts a human face on the messages while taking a strong stand against the problem. The two video spots can be viewed here and here.

Nearly 250 radio stations throughout the state will receive the PSAs, which the Alliance is marketing via direct mail and e-mail. In the coming weeks, Alliance members will also call a select group of stations to follow up on these initial outreach efforts.

For the past two years, the Alliance has been working to raise public awareness about the dangers of teen alcohol use since Wisconsin has the highest percentage of underage drinkers in the nation. In the past, the Alliance produced and distributed two television PSAs on the topic, which were aired by 17 stations and reached every major market in the state.

The Alliance is a non-profit, volunteer service organization comprised of physicians’ spouses. Founded in 1928, the Alliance assists with Society programs that improve the health and quality of life for all people. Alliance members work to promote health education, encourage volunteerism in activities that meet health needs, and support health-related charitable endeavors. For more details on the Alliance, click here, or to become a member, click here.

The Alliance’s project to curb teen drinking is funded by grants from the Society Foundation and the American Medical Association Foundation.

CME credit available for March 28 physician wellness workshop

Doctors Self Care: Why it Matters, is a workshop designed to explore strategies for improving personal health care among physicians and discuss how this topic affects patients and health care workers. The five-hour program, which includes PRA/AMA Category 1 CME Credit, will be held March 28, 2009, at Meriter Hospital in Madison. Erica Frank, MD, MPH, of the University of British Columbia-Vancouver, will present the keynote.

The conference fee is $50 for physicians and other medical staff who register before March 20. For more information, click here for the conference brochure or contact the Meriter CME office at 608.417.6386 or e-mail Howard Christensen.

CAPITOL INSIDER

Society testifies against proposed IPFCF Fund fee increase

Pointing out the dichotomy of requiring physicians to pay more into a Fund that has been raided of $200 million, the Society took advantage of a public hearing on the proposed fee increase to make the case that no fee increases should occur while the Society’s lawsuit against the state continues. The Society presented this written testimony to the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance, with Senior Vice President of Government Relations Mark Grapentine, JD, appearing personally to present the Society's case.

The 9.9 percent proposed increase in Fund fees would take effect on July 1, 2009, unless the Fund’s Board of Governors withdraws the rule. In a split vote last December, the Board approved that increase. The Society’s two representatives to the 13-member Board, CEO Susan Turney, MD, and President-elect Robert Jaeger, MD, both voted against the increase. (For a refresher on that action, see this issue of Medigram.)

For more information, contact Mark Grapentine, JD.

Track Capitol topics the Society is watching for you

You can now follow along with the Society’s Government Relations department in tracking bills and administrative rules of interest to physicians and their patients. Click here to access a list—updated weekly—of proposed bills and rules, the Society’s stance and any supporting testimony the Society has provided on the issues.

For more information, contact Mark Grapentine, JD, or Beth Alvin.

QUALITY CORNER

National Patient Safety Awareness Week is March 8-14

The annual Patient Safety Awareness Week, sponsored by the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF), is March 8-14. Patient Safety Awareness Week is a national education and awareness-building campaign for improving patient safety at the local level. For more information, visit the NPSF Web site.

FAQ

Question:
What is the difference between and EHR and an EMR?

Answer:
According to the National Alliance for Health Information Technology, an electronic medical record (EMR) is information on a patient that can be created, gathered, managed and consulted by authorized clinicians and staff in one health care organization.

An electronic health record (EHR) is information on a patient that conforms to nationally recognized interoperability standards. It can be created, managed and consulted by authorized clinicians and staff across more than one group.

For more information on health IT terminology and other definitions, Click here for more information.