ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS

Chair: Joanne Gauthier, COPM
Deputy Chair: Patricia Brown-Oliver, COPM
Danielle DeMaio-DeAngelis, COPM
Stacey Conant, COPM
Kristine McGriff, COPM
Robin Wagner, COPM

You can find our contact info under the "Members only," membership search function.

Have a great day!

Joanne

Here is some finance vocabulary that you should be familiar with:

Methods of accounting -- accrual method and cash basis

Know your various types of statements -- balance sheet, cash flow statement, income statement

chart of accounts

depreciation

credits and debits

general ledger

what is GAAP?

internal controls...why and how?

assets and liabilities

Costs -- direct, indirect, fixed, variable

 Any questions?

Have a great weekend, all.  AND GOOD LUCK AS YOU PREP FOR YOUR COPM!

Your phone system--what type is it?  VoIP?  Landlines?  do you use fiber, T1's?

is it internet based?

as far as your computers go---do you know the IP address of the computer you use?  do you know where to find it?  do you have in-house servers or are you cloud based.  how is your system networked?

What type of backup do you do?.

Do you use laptops, tablets, desktop?  familiarize yourself with the different options which seem to change daily.  

Portals?  kiosks?  

In case of a PHI breach:  Are you familiar with the time limits to notify patients and the Office of Civil Rights?  

"If 500 or more individuals’ data was compromised, you have to make a quick report to the individuals and the Office for Civil Rights. According to HHS, you must report, “without unreasonable delay and in no case less than 60 calendar days from the discovery of the breach"

If under 500:

 fewer than 500 individuals are involved, you must report to OCR within 60 days of the end of the calendar year in which the breach occurred (although you don’t have to wait), but you still have to report to those individuals within 60 days or sooner if you can.

these once again are Federal Requirements and some States may have their own requirements

I know many people are nervous about the financial formulas and financial reports.  Are you having htis issue?   Speak up if you are & we can help!

 How are you feeling about Operations?  Ask questions....even iuf you just want more info, but have no specific question!

Want more sample questions?  

Tell us where you feel weak in your sudying! We are here to help you succeed!

Long term liabilities would be reported on which financial statement:

A:  Balance Sheet

B:  Income Statement

C: Cash Flow Statement

D: Aged Trial Balance

It was just announced in AOA Today that Heather took the assessment online and is the AOA's newest COPM!  She and others who have taken the assessment are good resources if you have questions.

keep mind there are 150 questions which are multiple choice. The percentage of each area determines how many questions on that topic will be on the assessment.  

Harassment is a form of employment discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, (ADEA), and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, (ADA).

take the time to review the ADEA and ADA for the basics---do you know how many employees you must have to fall under the requirements of the ADA and ADEA:

If you have fifteen or more employees you fall under the requirements of the ADA and for ADEA the number is 20. 

Do you know what can be considered "Hostile Work" Environment?

Hostile Work Environment Harassment

A hostile environment can result from the unwelcome conduct of supervisors, co-workers, customers, contractors, or anyone else with whom the victim interacts on the job, and the unwelcome conduct renders the workplace atmosphere intimidating, hostile, or offensive.

Examples of behaviors that may contribute to an unlawful hostile environment include:

• discussing sexual activities;
• telling off-color jokes concerning race, sex, disability, or other protected bases;
• unnecessary touching;
• commenting on physical attributes;
• displaying sexually suggestive or racially insensitive pictures;
• using demeaning or inappropriate terms or epithets;
• using indecent gestures;
• using crude language;
• sabotaging the victim's work;

To determine if a claim for harrassment will go forward they must determine the following: 

First, unlawful harassing conduct must be unwelcome and based on the victim's protected status.

. Second, the conduct must be:

1. subjectively abusive to the person affected; and
2. objectively severe and pervasive enough to create a work environment that a reasonable person would find hostile or abusive.

Salary Basis Requirement

To qualify for exemption, employees generally must be paid at not less than $455 per week on a salary basis.  These salary requirements do not apply to outside sales employees, teachers, and employees practicing law or medicine.  Exempt computer employees may be paid at least $455 on a salary basis or on an hourly basis at a rate not less than $27.63 an hour.

Being paid on a “salary basis” means an employee regularly receives a predetermined amount of compensation each pay period on a weekly, or less frequent, basis.  The predetermined amount cannot be reduced because of variations in the quality or quantity of the employee’s work.  Subject to exceptions listed below, an exempt employee must receive the full salary for any week in which the employee performs any work, regardless of the number of days or hours worked.  Exempt employees do not need to be paid for any workweek in which they perform no work.  If the employer makes deductions from an employee’s predetermined salary, i.e., because of the operating requirements of the business, that employee is not paid on a “salary basis.”  If the employee is ready, willing and able to work, deductions may not be made for time when work is not available.

Circumstances in Which the Employer May Make Deductions from Pay

Deductions from pay are permissible when an exempt employee: is absent from work for one or more full days for personal reasons other than sickness or disability; for absences of one or more full days due to sickness or disability if the deduction is made in accordance with a bona fide plan, policy or practice of providing compensation for salary lost due to illness; to offset amounts employees receive as jury or witness fees, or for military pay; for penalties imposed in good faith for infractions of safety rules of major significance; or for unpaid disciplinary suspensions of one or more full days imposed in good faith for workplace conduct rule infractions.  Also, an employer is not required to pay the full salary in the initial or terminal week of employment, or for weeks in which an exempt employee takes unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.

Effect of Improper Deductions from Salary

The employer will lose the exemption if it has an “actual practice” of making improper deductions from salary.  Factors to consider when determining whether an employer has an actual practice of making improper deductions include, but are not limited to:  the number of improper deductions, particularly as compared to the number of employee infractions warranting deductions; the time period during which the employer made improper deductions; the number and geographic location of both the employees whose salary was improperly reduced and the managers responsible; and whether the employer has a clearly communicated policy permitting or prohibiting improper deductions.  If an “actual practice” is found, the exemption is lost during the time period of the deductions for employees in the same job classification working for the same managers responsible for the improper deductions. 

Isolated or inadvertent improper deductions will not result in loss of the exemption if the employer reimburses the employee for the improper deductions.

Safe Harbor

If an employer (1) has a clearly communicated policy prohibiting improper deductions and including a complaint mechanism, (2) reimburses employees for any improper deductions, and (3) makes a good faith commitment to comply in the future, the employer will not lose the exemption for any employees unless the employer willfully violates the policy by continuing the improper deductions after receiving employee complaints.

The federal requirement for employee break times is:

A:  Fifteen minutes every 2 hours

B:  Fifteen minutes every 3 hours

C:  15 minutes twice daily

D:  0 minutes daily

the answer of course is D   there is no federal requirement and the answer found on their website is:

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) does not require breaks or meal periods be given to workers. Some states may have requirements for breaks or meal periods. If you work in a state which does not require breaks or meal periods, these benefits are a matter of agreement between the employer and the employee (or the employee's representative).

This is an example of keeping in mind the assessment is based on federal requirements but as they mention in their response to the question you also must know your state requirements.

The current hourly minimum wage is:

A:  7.25

B:  8.75

C: 10.25

D: 15.00

answer:  A   that is the current minimum wage per hour

 This is set by the Fair Labor Standards Act or FLSA--

Fair Labor Standards Act

While the FLSA does set the minimum wage for certain workers, it does not, however, require any of the following:

• Severance pay
• Sick leave
• Vacations
• Holidays

Lets just take a look at some of the most commonly asked questions regarding HIPAA.  One issue which consistently is questioned is the possibility that someone might hear a conversation relating to a patient.  One of the Q&A facts from HHS.gov offers the following:

Can health care providers engage in confidential conversations with other providers or with patients, even if there is a possibility that they could be overheard?

Answer:

Yes. The HIPAA Privacy Rule is not intended to prohibit providers from talking to each other and to their patients. Provisions of this Rule requiring covered entities to implement reasonable safeguards that reflect their particular circumstances and exempting treatment disclosures from certain requirements are intended to ensure that providers’ primary consideration is the appropriate treatment of their patients. The Privacy Rule recognizes that oral communications often must occur freely and quickly in treatment settings. Thus, covered entities are free to engage in communications as required for quick, effective, and high quality health care. The Privacy Rule also recognizes that overheard communications in these settings may be unavoidable and allows for these incidental disclosures.

For example, the following practices are permissible under the Privacy Rule, if reasonable precautions are taken to minimize the chance of incidental disclosures to others who may be nearby:

• Health care staff may orally coordinate services at hospital nursing stations.
• Nurses or other health care professionals may discuss a patient’s condition over the phone with the patient, a provider, or a family member.
• A health care professional may discuss lab test results with a patient or other provider in a joint treatment area.
• A physician may discuss a patients’ condition or treatment regimen in the patient’s semi-private room.
• Health care professionals may discuss a patient’s condition during training rounds in an academic or training institution.
• A pharmacist may discuss a prescription with a patient over the pharmacy counter, or with a physician or the patient over the phone.

In these circumstances, reasonable precautions could include using lowered voices or talking apart from others when sharing protected health information. However, in an emergency situation, in a loud emergency room, or where a patient is hearing impaired, such precautions may not be practicable. Covered entities are free to engage in communications as required for quick, effective, and high quality health care.

The response although referring to primarily hospital settings can be adapted to private offices.

another area of HIPAA  is to review release of information regarding your employees--once again HHS.gov offers this response:

Employers and Health Information in the Workplace

The Privacy Rule controls how a health plan or a covered health care provider shares your protected health information with an employer. 

Employment Records

The Privacy Rule does not protect your employment records, even if the information in those records is health-related. In most cases, the Privacy Rule does not apply to the actions of an employer.

If you work for a health plan or a covered health care provider:

• The Privacy Rule does not apply to your employment records. 
• The Rule does protect your medical or health plan records if you are a patient of the provider or a member of the health plan.

Requests from your employer

Your employer can ask you for a doctor’s note or other health information if they need the information for sick leave, workers’ compensation, wellness programs, or health insurance.

However, if your employer asks your health care provider directly for information about you, your provider cannot give your employer the information without your authorization unless other laws require them to do so.

Generally, the Privacy Rule applies to the disclosures made by your health care provider, not the questions your employer may ask.

See 45 C.F.R. §§ 160.103 and 164.512(b)(1)(v), and OCR's Frequently Asked Questions.

For employer issues, contact:

• Department of Labor: (866) 4-USA-DOL
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: (800) 669-4000

Make yourself familiar with the compliance issues regarding HIPAA:

What is the definition of a covered entity?

What is considered PHI?

Privacy Policy and Procedures-what information must be included in your written privacy policies and procedures?

How often and when should employees receive HIPAA training?

A possible question might be:

Newly Hired Employees must receive HIPAA training within:

A:  10 days from date of hire

B:  15 days from date of hire

C:  30 days from date of hire

D:  120 days from date of hire

HIPAA training/review for employees of covered entities should be done:

A: Every six months

B: Every year

C: Every 2 years

D: Every 3 years

 these are basic questions and off the cuff

week we will focus on the concepts of OSHA, FACTA, HIPAA, wage and  hour and all the fun stuff.  Just keeping up with all the different agencies is a feat in itself.

Things to know will be --what are four particular standards relating to healthcare which are covered by OSHA?

1-Bloodborne Pathogen Standard

2-Hazard Communication Standard

3-:Lockout/Tagout Standard

4-Personal Protective Equipment Standard

 Review the basics of the four listed above.  These are the ones we deal with, train staff about yearly.

If you want more info the Department of Labor website is a good place to review.   The resource manual also gives a pretty concise review of all four standards.

You should be familiar with the development and administration of personnel policies for clinical, non-clinical and clinicians. 

Are you aware of the essential components of a job description?  How often should a job description be reviewed?

How do you recruit applicants for an open position?

What is involved in the hiring and onboarding processes?  Be familiar with the federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines pertaining to hiring and onboarding.   These include some of the following: ADA, EEOC, FLSA, Wage and labor laws, code of conduct, email, internet and intranet policies.

How will you maintain staff retention?

Training and professional growth should be documented to demonstrate competency and plan for staff development.  Some groups use checklists, computer models – like AOA University and one on one training via job shadow

Are you familiar with policies and procedures surrounding discipline and dismissal? 

Do you know what should be included in a performance evaluation and how often a performance evaluation should take place?  Do you understand how to link a performance evaluation to retention, training, professional growth, discipline and dismissal?

An application which constructs a barrier between your computer and the internet is a:

A:  Router

B:  Firewall

C:  VPN

D:  CPU

Answer is B and thanks to Firewalls for dummies they give the following definition

A firewall constructs a barrier between your computer and the Internet in an effort to safeguard your computer and the information in it. When you start looking to purchase the software or hardware that can guard your system, a checklist of questions to find answers to is a useful tool. Because a firewall protects from potential dangers on the Internet, you need to know a little about the ports, protocols, and IP addresses used to connect to it. And, you need to stay on top of current threats, which a variety of Web sites can help with.

There are different types of firewalls, depending upon the system you have and what type of barrier you need to set up.  Internet surfing gives a lot of good info but is also a good way to latch onto a virus lurking out there.  A firewall helps keep  you protected.

do you know what the central feature is that makes a system or at least part of a system a patient portal?

this would be the ability to expose PHI securely over the internet.  Patient portals have many uses and will vary by practice but they all allow patients to interact in some way with either their healthcare provider or staff.  It may be as simple as completing new patient forms prior to an appointment or a portal can be utilized by patients to review the results of their diagnostic studies or obtain copies of their personal record. 

The answer is C: LAN ( Local Area Network)

The MOST COMMON use in Telemedicine is:

A: Receive educational benefits from specialist

B: Consultation occurs in real time

C: Physician supervision of non-MD clinicians

D: Post-hospital care and treatment

Answer: B consultation occurs in real time

What does HIPAA stand for?

   A   Health Information and Patient Accountability Act

   B.   Health Information Protection and Accessibility Act

   C.  Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

   D:. Health Insurance Privacy Access Act

The answer is C. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

What is a small file that a web page on another machine writes to your personal

machine's disk to store various bits of information called?

A. Virus

B Cookie

C. Malware

D. Directory

Answer is B Cookie

What is VOIP used for?

A.  To utilize  the internet for telephone conversations.

B.  To utilize the telephone for faster internet speeds

C.  To provide virus protection

D. To offer public WiFi accessibility

Answer A  VOIP is Voice over Internet Protocol and enables you to use the internet for telephone calls.

The answer is C: LAN ( Local Area Network)

The MOST COMMON use in Telemedicine is:

A: Receive educational benefits from specialist

B: Consultation occurs in real time

C: Physician supervision of non-MD clinicians

D: Post-hospital care and treatment

Answer: B consultation occurs in real time

What does HIPAA stand for?

   A   Health Information and Patient Accountability Act

   B.   Health Information Protection and Accessibility Act

   C.  Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

   D:. Health Insurance Privacy Access Act

The answer is C. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

What is a small file that a web page on another machine writes to your personal

machine's disk to store various bits of information called?

A. Virus

B Cookie

C. Malware

D. Directory

Answer is B Cookie

What is VOIP used for?

A.  To utilize  the internet for telephone conversations.

B.  To utilize the telephone for faster internet speeds

C.  To provide virus protection

D. To offer public WiFi accessibility

Answer A  VOIP is Voice over Internet Protocol and enables you to use the internet for telephone calls.

Telecommunications--Our telephone systems are a large investment for practices and this also falls under IT. Make yourself aware of the different types of systems

Key KSU Less
KSU
PBX
VoIP

what type of system is best is determined by need---how many extensions to you need, how many features you need or want to have and the big one--budget



A type of  telephone system is generally installed and maintained by the customer is

A: KSU
B: Key KSU Less
C: PBX
D: VoIP

The answer is  B:  Key KSU less

Telemedicine is the technology that makes it work. Telemedicine makes it possible for patients in remote locations to visit via live video with specialists--send test results for consultations--or the patient, their provider and a specialist can all confer via live video for immediate results. There are different uses for telemedicine and it not just for remote locations but that is one of the common benefits for its use. It can be used for direct supervision of a non-MD such as PA or NP when you attend live educational courses this is also a use for this technology.

Disaster Recovery is the process, policies and procedures related to preparing for recovery or continuation of technology infrastructure critical to an organization after a natural or

human-induced disaster. Disaster recovery is a subset of business continuity. While business continuity involves planning for keeping all aspects of a business functioning in the midst of disruptive events, disaster recovery focuses on the IT or technology systems that support business function.

You must have a Disaster Recovery Plan in place for your practice!  Do you have one?  When was it last updated? Review Chapter 9 in the Resource Manual for a Step-By-Step guide to creating a Disaster Recovery Plan.

 A computer network consists of the communications media, the devices and the software needed to connect two or more computer systems and/or network devices. Organizations use networks to share hardware, programs and data internally. There are connections between networks to share data between them

What are the differences between T1 and Fiber? 

What is a Router?

What is a Network Hub?

What is a Network Operating System?

What is VPN?  How would you use it in your office?

What is a LAN?

What is a Server?

Let’s have some Sample Questions!

What is a network that connects computers to isolate remote computer networks at different locations?

A.    A Server

B.    A VPN

C.    A Utility

D.    A  DVD

The Answer is B  A VPN.

VPN (Virtual Private Network) A virtual private network (VPN) is a technology for using

the Internet or another intermediate network to connect computers to isolated remote

computer networks that would otherwise be inaccessible. It is a secure connection over the

Internet to a private network. It allows employees to access network resources via their home

Internet connection. It is commonly used by companies to create wide area networks (WANs)

by providing site-to-site connections to branch offices

The current most expensive IT solution to connect remote locations is:

A: T1
B: WAN
C: Fiber
D: Hubs

     The answer is C: fiber

What is an internet-based computing system which utilizes shared resources rather than

local servers or devices to handle applications or store information ?

A.    DNS

B.    Cloud

C.    VPN

D.    Server

The answer is B: Cloud

Cloud based , also called Hosted. Computing is a popular way of storing information and systems.   Make sure you are familiar with the differences between cloud based operations and server based operations.