What’s the Difference Between a Registered Nurse and a Nurse Practitioner?

November 15, 2022 by Beth Brown Leave a Comment

What’s the Difference Between a Registered Nurse and a Nurse Practitioner?

By: Mountain-Pacific Quality Health

November 15, 2022

The nursing profession focuses on patient observation and care. Often known as the backbone of any hospital, clinic or other health care facility, nurses provide vital care and support to patients. Health systems employ many nursing professions and specialties. In honor of National Nurse Practitioner Week, let’s look at nurse practitioners (NPs) versus registered nurses (RNs).… Read the rest

Stress: How it Affects Your Health and Seven Ways to Manage it

March 28, 2022 by Jennifer Adu Leave a Comment

By Mountain-Pacific Quality Health

Updated August 2023

We all feel stressed at one time or another. It is a normal and even healthy reaction to a variety of circumstances that happen in our daily life, a big life change or other traumatic events such as a pandemic or a natural disaster. Stress is a part of being human. However, stress continuing for weeks, months or beyond can become a chronic condition that contributes to many … Read the rest

National Pharmacy Week: Safely Using Pain Relievers

October 19, 2021 by Beth Brown Leave a Comment

National Pharmacy Week: Safely Using Pain Relievers

By Mountain-Pacific Quality Health

October 19, 2021

October is American Pharmacists Month, and October 17-23 is National Pharmacy Week. This is a great opportunity to thank our pharmacists for the important role they play in our health and our care. Pharmacists are a readily available resource who can answer questions about medications, vaccinations and much more.

Mountain-Pacific Quality Health sat down with one of our own pharmacists, … Read the rest

Pneumococcal Disease in Adults – What Is It? How Does It Spread? Part 1

May 6, 2021 by Beth Brown Leave a Comment

Pneumococcal Disease in Adults – What Is It? How Does It Spread? Part 1

By Mountain-Pacific Pacific Quality Health

May 6, 2021

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) pneumococcal pneumonia causes 150,000 hospitalizations each year in the United States. In 2018 alone, pneumococcal meningitis and bacteremia killed nearly 3,500 people. While pneumococcal disease in adults often ranges from mild to serious, the disease can be deadly. However, the disease is preventable. … Read the rest

HTS – MU: Multiple Provider Locations

July 11, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: Providers practicing in more than one location

July 11, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

What a beautiful summer! I hope you are all enjoying some fun in the sun. Speaking of fun, let’s talk about what to do if you have providers practicing in more than one location. The MU program is measured at the provider level, not the practice level, so if a provider practices in more than one location with a certified … Read the rest

HTS – MU: It is not too late to get incentive money in the Medicaid EHR Program

April 5, 2016 by Dale Applegate 1 Comment

MU: It is not too late to get incentive money in the Medicaid EHR Program

April 5, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

The last year that an eligible professional can begin participation is 2016. Medicaid Expansion has increased the number of Medicaid enrolled patients which in some circumstances could make more providers eligible for the Medicaid EHR incentive payments. The incentive program ends in 2021.

The Medicaid EHR Incentive Payments can total up to $63,750 … Read the rest

HTS – MU: Meaningful Use: First Quarter Review

April 1, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: Have you started your 2016 First Quarter review?

April 1, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

Ok, you got through attesting for 2015. Now if you have not already started thinking about 2016, the time is now.

First thing, run your 2016 YTD meaningful use reports, both objectives and CQMs. These will tell you where you need to focus. Second, make sure you have taken the screenshots for your audit folder. Here are all the … Read the rest

HTS – MU: CMS releases new FAQ on MU Public Registry Measures

March 30, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: CMS releases new FAQ on MU Public Registry Measures

March 30, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

Prior to February 25, CMS stated that eligible professionals (EPs) had to actively engage in two public health registries by February 29, 2016, for the 2016 program year.

On February 25, 2016, four days before the active engagement deadline, CMS released a new FAQ that allows EPs to use alternate exclusions for 2016 reporting as well. See CMS … Read the rest

HTS – MU: How to figure out if your providers are “hospital based”

March 20, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: How to figure out if your providers are “hospital based” for MU

March 20, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

CMS recently updated FAQ 9844 which states that a hospital-based eligible professional (EP) is defined as an EP who furnishes 90 percent or more of his/her services in either the inpatient or emergency department of a hospital. Hospital-based EPs do not qualify for Medicare or Medicaid EHR incentive payments.

If you are a new EP

… Read the rest

HTS – MU: New deadlines for MU Hardship Application submissions

March 15, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: New deadlines for MU Hardship Application submissions

March 15, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

The 2015 reporting Hardship application deadline has been extended to July 1, 2016 for those eligible professionals (EPs), eligible hospitals (EHs) and critical access hospitals (CAHs) that are unable to attest for Meaningful Use in 2015 and want to apply for an exception from the Medicare Electronic Health Records Incentive Program 2017 payment adjustment.

This new, streamlined application process is … Read the rest

HTS – MU: New deadline for 2015 Meaningful Use attestations

March 5, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: New deadline for 2015 Meaningful Use attestations

March 5, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

CMS extended the attestation deadline for the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs to March 11, 2016 at 11:59 pm ET, from the original deadline of February 29.

Eligible professionals (EPs), eligible hospitals (EHs) and critical access hospitals (CAHs) participating in the Medicare EHR Incentive program can attest through the CMS . Providers participating in the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program

… Read the rest

HTS – MU: Did you take your MU screenshots yet?

March 1, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: Did you take your MU screenshots yet?

March 1, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

Seriously, it’s time to get the needed screenshots for your meaningful use audit folder. The following screenshots should be taken immediately. In order to pass a CMS audit, we recommend you include the system date in your screen shot, as well as the name of your facility. You only need one screenshot per EHR instance, so if you have more … Read the rest

HTS – MU: MU Hardship exemption application deadlines looming

February 15, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: Hardship exemption application deadlines looming

February 15, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

Recent Medicare legislation, Patient Access and Medicare Protection Act (PAMPA), launched important changes to the EHR incentive program hardship exception process designed to reduce burden on clinicians, hospitals and critical access hospitals. CMS has now posted the new hardship applications for eligible professionals (EPs), eligible hospitals (EHs) and critical access hospitals (CAHs).

The deadline for EPs, EHs, and CAHs to submit their … Read the rest

HTS – MU: Don’t miss the “actively engaged” deadline for the MU public health measures

February 1, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: Don’t miss the “actively engaged” deadline for the MU public health measures

February 1, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

Eligible professionals that need to meet the specialized registry public health measure in 2016 are required to have registered with the reporting agency by February 29 to meet the requirement of being registered within 60 days of the start of the reporting period.

Who needs to meet this requirement? If you are an eligible provider … Read the rest

HTS – MU: How to kick off Meaningful Use for 2016

January 1, 2016 by Dale Applegate Leave a Comment

MU: How to kick off Meaningful Use for 2016

January 1, 2016

Written by Patty Kosednar

The 2016 meaningful use reporting period starts on January 1 for all Eligible Professionals and Eligible Hospitals that are beyond their first year of MU. The Modified Stage 2 requirements apply for 2016, but “alternate exclusions” do not. Below is a list of items you will want to handle as soon as the reporting year starts.

The following configurations … Read the rest