Continuing Education for Medical Administration

At least twice per week, I find a webinar related to me and my team's work tasks and listen to them while I'm working.  Sometimes, I'll stop and watch the slideshow if the topic interests me, or if there is a morsel of information that I can pick up from it.  Other times, I just let it run in the background.  I prefer to have two things going on at the same time when I'm working with data and checking out the numbers.  It oddly keeps me more focused.

Why would I subject myself to constant noise and chatter?  For the love of learning. As you know, the healthcare industry changes daily.  Most of the fundamentals stay the same, but we know there is always something going on from an, billing, technology, regulation, or legal standpoint, so why not set yourself to always be learning.

Not sure where to get these webinars or who is running them?  Startwith your software vendors.  They are always finding ways to promote their products.  Oftentimes you will find that they toss in a few tips and tricks that help you use their software more efficiently, and teach you something you may not have been aware of.

Another area to look at are the insurance payers.  I've not been shy that they are not my favorite people in healthcare, but they too have things to share that you may not have known about their policies that will help you get paid faster.  What do you have to lose?

CMS.gov has a list of webinars and blog articles to learn from.  It's always a great idea to know if they are having any software issues or planned downtime from producing your payments.  There is a section on their site for NEWS, make sure you check that out a few times per month so you don't get stuck not knowing that there is an issue.

Our very own Physicians Practice has webinars from time to time, they are in the business to keep you informed, so don't miss those when they come around.

Here are some places I get my information from:

https://community.webpt.com/education/webinars/may-2016-webinar-pt-billing-secrets-5-things-payers-dont-want-you-know/

https://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Medicare-Learning-Network-MLN/MLNProducts/WebBasedTraining.html

https://www.blueshieldca.com/provider/news-education/home.sp

http://www.ptpn.com/press/articles.php

http://www.physicianspractice.com/medical-billing-collections

The bottom line is to align yourself with various sources of information, and don't stick with just one.  The more you know, the better decisions can be made for your practice.  It would be like only reading one author for all of your information and only getting one perspective.  Even if you don't agree with what someone is saying, it's always healthy to listen, you might learn something.