Doctors might know what's best for their patients, but patients don't always choose to follow that advice. Over these past few issues, CMM has talked about CMS' new suggested best practices, which were included in revisions to the discharge planning section of the CMS State Operations Manual. These new recommendations call on facilities to carefully investigate patients' refusals to heed medical advice and document their reasons for doing so. However, there is more you can do when a patient balks at a physician's instructions, says Wendy De Vreugd, RN, BSN, PHN, FNP, CCDS, MBA, senior director of case management at West Region Kindred Healthcare, Hospital Division.
Imagine a hospital as a sentient being that holds within it all things necessary to heal you from illness or injury. The HIM department, or medical records department, is this being's memory. Without it, there would be no continuum of patient care. Sometimes, it's the hospital's memory that serves to produce an otherwise overlooked diagnosis.
It's a brave new world out there for business associates (BA). BAs needed to comply with the HIPAA Security Rule and the use and disclosure provisions of the Privacy Rule in February 2010 as a result of the HITECH Act. However, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) held off on any enforcement activities-that is, until recently.
Eligible professionals (EP), eligible hospitals, and critical access hospitals (CAH) that cannot demonstrate meaningful use of EHRs could soon face Medicare payment adjustments. But CMS has an important message for providers: There's still time to prove meaningful use and avoid adjustments.
Q. Is it acceptable for admitting and patient registration staff to photograph patients upon check- in for identification purposes? Is it permissible to take pictures of behavioral health patients for the same purpose?
