Healthcare Blog
The latest in all things RCM, Electronic Health Records, Radiology Information Systems, Practice Management, Medical Billing, Value-Based Care, & Healthcare IT.
Stephen O'Connor is the Director of Brand and Digital Marketing, responsible for many aspects of Advanced Data Systems Corporation’s (ADS) marketing, including product marketing, customer acquisition, demand generation, brand, brand design, and content marketing.
Stephen has more than 20 years of healthcare industry experience. Prior to ADS, Stephen spent 11 years at Medical Resources Inc. (MRI), most recently as the Manager of Marketing & Internet Services, where he and his teams were responsible for all marketing efforts and the market positioning of MRI’s services.
Stephen spends his day's planning, writing, & designing resources for the modern healthcare professional.
By:
Stephen O'Connor
January 28th, 2015
If your oncology-focused practice has been getting by using an antiquated paper-based system to manage your day-to-day operations and the enormous amount of data generated and recorded for each patient, you have likely been looking for a computerized solution. This is why so many practices make an effort to look into bring electronic health record software into their facilities. Even a cursory glance at the available software solutions will show that it’s best to go with EHR software that has been developed with the unique requirements of oncology.
By:
Stephen O'Connor
January 26th, 2015
Given the fact that your team of medical professionals may see thousands of patients every year, there are bound to be some occasions when you find yourself confronted with angry patients. When patients are unhappy, it can be a stressful experience for your staff as well as for other patients who may happen to be nearby when voices are raised in anger. Medical problems can be fraught with high tension, anxiety, and fear, and people sometimes react to situations with more anger than they intend or even realize at the point of outburst. It’s useful to adopt a compassionate and understanding attitude while making sure that all parties feel respected and not threatened. To help you and your team deal with such difficult situations, here are three rules for addressing angry patients more successfully.
Learn why patient engagement is a necessity and how you can master it within your practice.
By:
Stephen O'Connor
January 23rd, 2015
You’ve managed to build up a great team of medical professionals at your practice, from nurses and doctors to the people providing them support in the back office and at reception. However, like any prudent owner or manager of a thriving medical organization, you are always on the lookout for ways to improve conditions and provide the best possible care for your loyal patients. In fact, one of the most important ways you can keep a practice financially secure and successful is to do such a great job that your patients serve as ambassadors and refer new patients to your facility. If you want to improve your medical staff, here are five things that you can give them today to step up their game.
By:
Stephen O'Connor
January 21st, 2015
Whether the radiological practice that you manage is fairly established or is relatively new to the area where you are providing service, it pays to take advantage of the latest developments in software solutions. Radiology can often involve large amounts of data, especially when you consider the file sizes required for processing, analyzing, and storing digital records such as X-rays and other scans. In addition, staff members have unique types of information to address in the course of evaluating, diagnosing, and treating patients.
Electronic Health Records | Healthcare Advice
By:
Stephen O'Connor
January 19th, 2015
As the owner or manager of a well-respected oncology practice, you know that it would be a mistake to rest on your laurels or accept your current level of service as the best your staff is capable of providing. There is always room for improvement, and savvy medical professionals will take the necessary measures to step up the quality of their work. With that in mind, here are three steps that you can take to bring your oncology practice from good to great.
By:
Stephen O'Connor
January 16th, 2015
Burnout is a serious issue afflicting our nation’s most talented doctors and nurses. It’s of vital importance that medical practice managers institute policies and set up procedures to keep their medical professionals from spreading themselves too thinly. Read on to learn more about how to keep your best nurses and doctors from burning out and maintaining their abilities to provide excellent care to patients on a consistent basis.
By:
Stephen O'Connor
January 14th, 2015
Every medical practice that focuses on a particular specialty will have unique challenges to contend with, and oncology is no exception. With a wide variety of types of cancer to diagnose, assess, and develop a treatment strategy for, oncologists must balance the level of compassion and honesty as they prepare their patients for their upcoming treatments and ongoing surveillance and testing. Oncologists are making great strides in treating cancers, with new techniques, medicines, and protocols being developed all the time to help them handle this disease in all its forms. The stakes are high, and maintaining the highest standards of care requires enormous resources from medical professionals as they seek to improve the lives of their patients. With that in mind, here is an overview of four things every oncologist should be focusing on during evaluation, treatment, and follow-up encounters with the people for which they are providing care.
By:
Stephen O'Connor
January 2nd, 2015
As an astute medical professional or as a manager or owner of a medical practice, you are aware of the impending required change from ICD-9 as mandated by CMS. Organizations need to make the transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10 by October 1, 2015. The code change is organized by the World Health Organization, which creates, manages, and updates ICD codes. Understanding the differences between ICD-9 and ICD-10 will help you and your team get prepared for the upcoming change. It’s natural to ask what is the most significant change when switching from ICD-9 to ICD-10? Since the change is mandatory, your staff really has no choice in making the switch, but it is important to know why they must do so.
Practice Management | Healthcare Advice
By:
Stephen O'Connor
December 31st, 2014
How well do you think your dermatology practice is being managed lately? If you’re not using a robust computer system and the finest available dermatology-oriented software, it’s likely that you’ve been making do with generic medical practice applications or an outdated legacy system. Certainly, conventional electronic health record applications can help you improve how you do work, but dermatology-oriented EHR systems are a much better option. Why settle for one size fits all when you can get the specialized software that your organization could really benefit from? Managing a dermatology practice is much easier when you have dedicated software that is designed to meet the needs of your specialty and the particular needs of your patients.
Healthcare Advice | Radiology Information System
By:
Stephen O'Connor
December 17th, 2014
If you’re not maximizing the number of patients you can see every day as well as the number of referrals that your facility sees on a regular basis, you are doing a disservice to your radiological practice. Taking advantage of the latest developments in software solutions will definitely help a health services provider work more efficiently. Many medical practices use electronic health record software to keep track of their patient’s clinical and medical details and to interact with insurance entities more effectively. However, standard EHR applications are not the most suitable approach when you have a specialty to support. Read on for details about how radiology-specific software can maximize your revenue and keep referrers referring patients to your practice.