What makes Orthopaedist.com different?

Orthopaedist.com is simple.
Orthopaedist.com is your one-stop resource for learning about bone and joint conditions and treatment options, evaluating your joint health, and finding a qualified physician. All of the content on Orthopaedist.com has been carefully selected, structured, and kept up-to-date, to make it easy for you to find the information—or the physician—you need.
Orthopaedist.com is specialized.
Orthopaedic specialists are different from general practitioners because of their deep knowledge and experience in bone and joint care. Similarly, Orthopaedist.com differs from other health-information websites because it contains only orthopaedic content and resources. This focus gives you the relevant information and specialized support you need without having to sort through information about unrelated health conditions.
Orthopaedist.com is supported by physicians.
Where does the physician profile information on Orthopaedist.com come from? The orthopaedic specialists themselves provide the information in their profile. Every orthopaedic specialist listed on Orthopaedist.com has agreed to be listed here and has verified their profile information.

Why Orthopaedist versus orthopedist?

Orthopaedist is the proper spelling for the type of physician focused on treating the musculoskeletal system and dates back to 1741. Orthopedist is the more common spelling, but many colleges, universities, residency programs still use the Latin spelling, as does the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. More important to consumers, orthopaedists are highly trained to treat the musculoskeletal system non-surgically and surgically alike, which is why we’ve avoided the more narrow focus on orthopaedic surgery.

More than 500,000 knee replacement surgery and more than one-third as many hip replacement surgeries are performed annually in the United States. Whether you’re ready for a joint replacement or simply need to consult an orthopaedic specialist, Orthopaedist.com will provide you basics on your shoulder, elbow, hip and knee joints. Additionally, Orthopaedist.com provides comprehensive insights and explanations for the conditions that affect each of those joints, as well as the non-surgical and surgical treatment options that are common. Risk factors are identified and comprehensive frequently asked questions (FAQ’s) are provided that will be invaluable when seeking treatment from an orthopaedists.

To learn more go to www.orthopaedist.com.

Accelero Health Partners, LLC (Accelero) helps doctors build better healthcare practices and helps their hospitals build better healthcare delivery models. We have a deep understanding of orthopaedic healthcare and the needs of patients, based on more than 12 years of musculoskeletal program consulting and decades of applied innovation in the delivery of orthopaedic care.

As part of the review process, CMS asked AAOS to conduct member surveys as to the “skin to skin” OR time to perform these procedures.  The survey results were 45 minutes for 29880 and 40 minutes for 29880.  The old relative values for these codes were based on “skin to skin” times of 80 minutes for 29880 and 66 minutes for 29881.  The philosophy of CMS is that the relative value should decrease if the physician’s time involved also decreased.  Even though this decrease in RVU for these codes has a defined methodology that intuitively makes sense, an orthopedic surgeon still will experience a decrease in reimbursement for these two codes.  This is yet another reason that having a program that provides the orthopedic surgeon with an efficient operating room environment is critical to the success of your service line.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/16/health/hip-impingement-grows-popular-but-remains-unproven.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=hip%20procedure&st=cse

http://www.beckersasc.com/100-best-places-to-work-2010.html

One of the best ways to demonstrate and showcase the success of these efforts is through an annual joint replacement patient reunion event.  Mary Washington Healthcare’s Human Motion Institute does an exceptional job conducting these annual events.  During the event, Mary Washington Healthcare has a film crew tape the event and interview some of the patients.  When listening to the patient interviews, you can hear firsthand accounts of the quality that is being experienced and delivered.  In my experience, this is a really impactful way to help others answer the question – why choose us?

I invite you to click on the link below to see the great job Mary Washington does with this event, and experience for yourself the value of integrating an annual Joint Reunion as part of your joint care program.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=an14O_OxHso&feature=youtu.be

1. How is WOMAC^® communicated with physicians?

WOMAC^® results are sent to the top two physicians through the orthopedic team meetings. A print out is delivered and explained to each physician by the orthopedic care coordinator.

2. What is their process for collecting the pre-operative and post-operative survey?

The pre-op survey is administered during the education class, which has a very high attendance rate. For those who are unable to attend, the survey is provided along with education during PAT. All post-op surveys are collected over the phone by the Orthopedic Care Coordinator.  Dedication to this process has established a high compliance rate.

3. How is WOMAC^® leveraged for marketing?

A physician newsletter is sent out once or twice per year with WOMAC^® data included.  Results are also included on The Medical Center of Lewisville website, on service line brochures and on a 12-foot banner used at community events.

4. What success have they had meeting their goals?

Outcomes have always been good at The Medical Center of Lewisville and it’s used exclusively as a strong marketing tool.

Because of the wide age demographic of potential patients, a sports medicine program provides a unique opportunity to increase a hospital’s visibility in the community through a large and diverse audience.  In most cases, a larger percentage of sports medicine referrals to the surgeon come directly from the community.  Successfully integrated community relationships and programs are a fundamental component to creating a mindset within the community that your surgeons and hospital have expertise in sports medicine.  A well-crafted community programming strategy should appeal to the vast spectrum of ages within the sports medicine patient demographics. An effective marketing campaign uses consistent branding and materials that positively impact a larger marketing presence and effectively communicates the sports medicine program to the community.

Although relatively few high school athletes require surgery for sports-related injuries, school district relationships provide a connection between the athlete, hospital and physicians. Athletic trainers provide high visibility with their services at the school district, but their role depends on the market environment. Athletic trainers can be employed by the school district or a physician practice, or the hospital can provide athletic training services under a contracted agreement.  Athletic trainers with school district relationships provide an entry point into a community.  In some markets, a competitor hospital may have an established niche with athletic training services within the school districts. It is important to remember that there are other ways to reach the community beyond the school district relationships. Other community integration can involve youth sports groups, adult YMCA and recreational centers, as well as interactive and largely preventative programs such as ACL or overuse injury prevention, golf, running and ski clinics along with coaches education. The youth sports groups and adult recreational groups involve a vast age demographic, yet are the most under-served population with no consistent method for access. When establishing relationships or developing community events for the youth sports and adult recreational programs, it is important to understand the structure of the organizations in the area, whether they are an independent organization, tied to the community recreation program or affiliated with a school, church or the local YMCA.  Websites for these groups can provide insight into different types of sponsored events. Effective community programming events can be developed to provide education to this group of potential patients, as well as improve visibility for the hospital’s sports medicine services and physicians within the community.

The Importance of PCP Referrals

While a large majority of sports medicine referrals come directly from the community, another key referral source is primary care physicians (PCPs). Although there is variability in how much treatment a PCP desires to directly provide to patients with sports medicine injuries, it is important for the PCP to be educated on when to refer a patient to an orthopedic surgeon for sports-related injuries. Education could take the form of an interactive continuing medical education event provided by the sports medicine orthopedic surgeons to the development of care algorithms for the more common sports injuries. It is also critical for orthopedic surgeons to have timely access for PCP referrals and commit to improved PCP integration and communication.

For example, broadening your collection of functional outcomes to include non-operative patients and showing patient improvement with non-operative measures shows a commitment to quality with a respect for the importance of the health care dollar.  For referral sources with many competing daily priorities, making the referral process easy and streamlined by ensuring same day access to your spine center (and tracked for leveraging – i.e. We offer 98% of our patients an appointment the same day) will make you the clear winner in the referral process.  Other operational outcomes that ring true to payers and referral sources worth tracking are:  Appropriate MRI utilization, appropriate use of epidural steroid injections, and adherence to evidence-based practice avoiding bed rest and educating in appropriate activity for acute low back pain.

Of course, don’t forget your customer service metrics.  If you get that referral in the door and blow it, you will likely never see that patient again.  If your facility is not tracking these metrics through an outpatient tool, you can and should develop your own.  Accelero Health Partners has many samples we can share with you.