Snapshot of One Of Our Facilities: Open MRI of Pueblo

   Open MRI of Pueblo is one of our locally owned and operated independent diagnostic imaging centers located in Pueblo, Colorado.  As an independently run facility, Open MRI of Pueblo is able to remain committed to serving the residents of Pueblo and the surrounding areas with the most advanced clinical procedures, while preserving the highest standard of care.

              

  This dedication to a blend of affordable diagnostic imaging and the highest quality in care has been recently made evident by the purchase of Hitachi’s High-Field MR System, the OASIS.  This will be the first Outpatient High-Field Open MR System in the entire state of Colorado. Named by KLAS, the leading healthcare research firm, as the highest ranked MR System currently on the market, The Hitachi OASIS MR is simply the best option for patients when it comes to innovative yet comfortable technology.  The magnet has received awards for the second year in a row at this week’s RSNA 2011 reception.

                      

   By focusing on three core competencies; service, technology and care, Open MRI of Pueblo has established a reputation for their exceptional attention to the patient experience.  The arrival of Hitachi’s OASIS encompasses all three of those aspects of success the staff at Open MRI of Pueblo strive for.  Further commitment to the community is evident by the facility’s over 40,000 patients treated since its opening in 2004.  Dr. William M. Needell, Open MRI of Pueblo’s onsite radiologist, has been with the center since it opened, and has spent 20 out of his 26 years of experience in the radiology field, focusing on Hitachi MR Systems.  The blend of Dr. Needell’s exceptional skills and knowledge and the Open MRI of Pueblo’s dedicated staff, makes for an unparalleled health care experience, especially in light of the new magnet, which

Unique Marketing Efforts to Improve Patient Volume

From the perspective of a healthcare marketing professional, improvement of patient volume within a practice is often the number one priority.  So when it comes to executing that duty, no stone is left un-turned.   In the past, physician referrals were easier to come by, but with physicians taking on more capabilities through the conglomeration of practices, independent practices have often times been left high and dry.

However, with health care changes leading to an increase in pricing transparency, patient experience is now at the forefront of reasons patients select certain providers.  Marketing professionals are able to utilize their practice’s patient experience as a selling point, however modern technology has required them to go beyond engaging in helpful dialogue with referring physician offices and direct marketing, and has shifted into adventures in social media.

Turn Up The Volume, a blog dedicated to providing insights to increasing patient volume, discusses some of our favorite unique marketing efforts.  The blog even suggests using “celebrity” endorsements to drive patient volume, which seems funny, but the writers quote an article from the Huffington Post to back up the facts.

So, marketing professionals, this is your call out.  The key is creativity and a passion for delivering your message: that your practice is simply the best option for patients. I mean, with a well thought out and planned execution, why can’t “Because Snoop Dogg Says So” be a successful marketing campaign?

                

"The Backstory – How I got started in Healthcare Social Media"

We found the following article interesting and inspiring for anyone that hasn’t yet taken the bait when it comes to social media in the health care world.

by ED BENNETT on NOVEMBER 1, 2011
in UNCATEGORIZED
Note – the following essay was included in Mayo Clinic Social Media Residency Handbook 

My passion for social media was sparked by two events separated by ten years.

In the late 1990’s, back when the commercial web began, I helped dozens of organizations develop their first web presence.

Many business leaders understood the radical changes a web site could bring, but they were in the minority. Most belittled the idea, sticking with business as usual. (“Our customers use the Yellow Pages.”) Sadly, the most skeptical industry was healthcare. Some major hospitals didn’t have a web site until 2006.

                             
The second event was more personal – watching my daughter grow up as texting, MySpace and then Facebook became the glue holding her friends together. As I explored these services two things became clear and by 2008 I was convinced that:

1. Social media was redefining the web – providing tools people wanted and were using at extraordinary rates. It wasn’t going away and seemed to be in the early stages of something big.
2. Hospitals would, once again, stay behind.

That’s what motivated me in 2009 to build the Hospital Social Network List. A tool for hospital marketing communications (aka, marcomm) folks, it answered the critical management question, “You want our hospital to be on Facebook? Is anyone else doing it?”

Three years later, a significant percentage hospitals are active on social media and we’re just starting to understand the value for our patients, community, and organizations.

These trends are now converging within the healthcare industry:

1. Workforce demographics – staff who grew up with social media are getting into more senior management positions.
2. Patient expectations – patients use these social media to connect with hospitals and healthcare professionals for themselves and families.
3. Patient communities – empowered patients use social media to take charge of their own health and encourage others to do the same.

What can you do to prepare for these changes?

1. Learn these tools and become comfortable with the communities they build.
2. Prepare your organization for change. Educate and encourage the participation of your peers and management.
3. Healthcare has hundreds of topics/areas, what’s your special interest? Find your niche and become knowledgeable and passionate.
4. Build a network of trusted colleagues beyond your organization. Share ideas, answer questions, and don’t be afraid to ask for advice. (You are always welcome to call me – the telephone is still my favorite social media tool)

But most of all – have fun! There’s a reason 800 million people use Facebook

Read more: http://ebennett.org/#ixzz1du8i4eZC

Supreme Court to Rule on Individual Health Care Mandate

After months of discourse on the constitutionality of President Obama’s health-care overhaul legislation, The U.S. Supreme court has announced its agreement to rule on the individual health care mandate that was pushed through Congress in 2010.  The concern of the members of Congress who are supporting the lawsuit is that the law over-steps its threshold of power and authority in regards to making it a requirement for Americans to acquire insurance by 2014.  Often times patients prefer to pay their own health expenses, especially when they take into consideration the trend in pricing transparency and price shopping for health care.

                         

  The court hearings will begin in March and will most likely commence in late June.  The basis of the dispute lies in the government’s power to regulate interstate commerce.  Since reimbursements, collections and insurance is all state-to-state based, it has been argued from the beginning that the health care legislation referred to as “ObamaCare,” is unconstitutional.  

   The American Center for Law and Justice is the legal group that has been lobbying against “ObamaCare” since the beginning and just a few weeks ago, they released an amicus brief to the Supreme Court requesting that the Justices take the case, representing the 105 members of Congress and the innumerable Americans that are in support of the lawsuit.  This announcement serves as a ray of hope for all of those individuals in opposition to the mandate, but The New York Times Caucus Blog says that it could serve as a risk to some of the potential presidential candidates.

Self-Referral & Its Impact on Radiologists

With reimbursements crashing like avalanches and costs for medical services rising at the rate of King Kong climbing a skyscraper, health care professionals’ revenue situation is comparable to a bad horror movie.  The villain varies for many, but for Radiologists, that villain is undeniably, Self-Referral.

           

      Self-Referral is an issue since radiologists  do not refer patients for studies; rather they simply provide the interpretation of those studies, while other physicians have the opportunity to do both.  Unfortunately, some Physician’s end-up referring their patients to facilities he or she has financial interest in.  This is called Self Referral.  This interest ranges from full ownership of, partial investment in, or structured compensation arrangement with the facility that is performing the procedure.  This concept sounds like a great idea in theory, however it is considered a conflict of interest that has resulted in over-utilization of services and over-scans.  Referring doctors that own their own equipment simply use it more frequently, but combative marketing to help change this is on the rise. 

 It has become evident that self-referral is a problem because it has driven up health care costs and inspired a decline in reimbursements for the procedures, thanks to supply and demand.  Laws such as the Stark Law, have been enacted to control this issue, however exceptions have enabled physicians to find ways around the intent of the law.  The impact of this practice has affected Radiologists the most.  In order to limit self-referral, Medicare and insurances have wretched down payments to Radiologists.  Unfortunately, radiologists have little influence on referrals and the impact of cuts does little to slow self-referral.

Dr. Jayson Lord, one of Advanced Imaging Center’s onsite radiologists, commented on the issue stating, “It is a convoluted system that has really taken a beating on radiologists.”  Due to referring physicians’ practices attempting to keep patients in-house to increase their revenue, independent facilities (those that do not accept self referral) have seen a large decrease in volume. He says many self-referring facilities do not purchase high quality equipment and do not have the ability to update technology, which means patients are not receiving the highest quality care they deserve.  “Patients think they are getting a pretty great deal, they can get an appointment set almost immediately at a lower cost, but what they don’t know, is that they are not going to be getting the best reads if their scans have to be outsourced,” says Dr. Lord.

    It is also important to understand that physicians are essentially paid to order or perform tests and procedures, not to think about the most effective options.   Patients should be aware that this can sometimes lead to physicians finding themselves over-scanning and over-utilizing scans, ultimately costing the system more.  Insurance companies have combated self-referral by cutting the costs of services, so that they save money, but as in physics; for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction.  So, physicians simply order more and more, which only feeds the vicious cycle.  Hospitals and other practices will survive this challenge because they have other services to fall back on, unlike Radiologists who do not have reoccurring patients and varied services outside of diagnostic imaging.

“Self-Referral will eventually go away, as they can only cut costs for so long before centers will have to start closing their door,” says Dr. Lord.  However, the ramifications of the new health care system will eventually prevail over the self-referral villain, and the doors will open for new opportunities.  Until then, radiologists will continue to stress their ability to provide the highest quality care and services and hope that patients make the decisions that are best for them.

 Learn more about Self-Referral and The Stark Laws and what it means for you!