HealthPoint Blog Post Archives

 

Welcome to the October Compliance Blog Post!

We are back with a Compliance Blog Post for October 2023. This month, we are talking about HIPAA!

As part of HealthPoint’s ongoing HIPAA Security Program, Brian Thurston and Katherine Hall (the HIPAA Security and Privacy Officers) are sending out quarterly HIPAA reminders. To kick off the fourth Quarter of 2023, we are discussing the different consent forms we use to release medical records.

Before you read further, please take a moment to take THIS QUIZ!  The quiz is a quick check of your knowledge of consent and the differences between the forms we use. All responses are anonymous, and we will be using this to gauge the need for additional training!

As an organization, we rely on different consent forms to release medical information appropriately. Below are the most common types of releases and how they are used.

Patient Initiated Medical Release

• When should it be used? This form should be used if a patient needs medical records sent to another healthcare facility, a job, etc. In this form, they designate who we are to release the records to and how they are to be released (fax, paper copy, etc.), and patients can determine what will be released to them.
• What does it allow us to disclose? Whatever the patient tells us, we can, except for Behavioral Health records. Behavioral health records require a provider’s release.
• What does it not do? Release anything not authorized by the patient.

Third-Party Release

• When should it be used? Any time a patient has someone else, they would like to have access to their health information, a non-healthcare facility. This could be for a partner, a parent (if the child is an adult), a close friend, or another relative helping with the patient’s care.
• What does it allow us to disclose? We can give these people patient information as appropriate if the form is filled out and valid.
• What does it not do? A Third party cannot sign an additional release of information for a patient.

Medical Records Authorization to Release

• When should it be used? We have patients fill this out when we need records from another (non-HealthPoint) provider’s office sent to us. Patients fill this out, and then we send it to the other provider’s office.
• What does it allow us to disclose? Nothing! We are sending this to another provider for them to do the disclosure.
• What does it not do? It does not allow us to disclose medical information.

 

Hopefully, this clears up some confusion around consent and when to use which form! Next month, we will tackle the rest of the consent forms (Consent to Treat by a Minor, Consent to Treat by Non-Parent, etc.!)

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We are Here to Help!

If you have any questions about any of this content, please reach out to our compliance team at: Compliance@HealthPoint-tx.com

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Welcome to the August Compliance Blog Post!

We are back with a Compliance Blog Post for August 2023. This month we are talking about safeguarding HealthPoint Facilities – A Comprehensive Insight on Employee Visitors, Family Members, & Children.  We’ve got a plan called the HealthPoint Facility Access Security Plan , and it’s got all the details you need to know about who’s allowed, where, and when. Let’s check out some parts of the policy that you should know about:

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• Clear and Simple Rules:

  • The Facility Access Security Plan Policy doesn’t beat around the bush. It tells everyone exactly who can come into our facilities and which areas they can go to. No confusion, no guessing – just straightforward rules to keep things running smoothly.

• Defining Spaces:

  • At HealthPoint, we care about not only our employees but also our patients. This plan is designed to protect their sensitive patient health information. And, to make sure we are HIPAA compliant and our patients know their information is safe with us.

• Who is allowed in each space:

  • Life is unpredictable, and sometimes there are extenuating situations. Maybe a babysitter cancels… If there’s a good reason, there is room for that in this policy, as long as it is abided by.
  • Let’s learn who is allowed where and when, and who needs to be with them:

• Reporting & Enforcement Actions:

  • We always encourage our employees to say something if they see something. Enforcement of this policy is no different. Remember this is for the SAFETY of our teams and patients.

 

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So, remember, it’s essential to know and follow the Facility Access Security Plan. It’s all about making HealthPoint a secure and happy place for everyone involved. We believe that when we all work together and respect the rules, we create a fantastic community that thrives and cares for each other.

If you would enjoy learning more or would like further clarification, we recommend you review the full plan HERE. 

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We are Here to Help!

If you have any questions about any of this content, please reach out to our compliance team at: Compliance@HealthPoint-tx.com

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Welcome to August 2023 Training Tips!

We’re back with August Training Tips from the Training and Development department! This month, you’ll get reminders about Aidet, the six rights of medication administration, intermuscular injections, and when to check labs. Join us as we keep our skills fresh! 

Keeping your skills sharp when working in a health clinic is of utmost importance for several reasons. Firstly, the healthcare industry is constantly evolving, with new technologies, treatments, and research emerging regularly. By keeping your skills up-to-date and sharp, you can stay ahead of these changes, ensuring that you provide the best possible care to your patients. Moreover, with the high stakes involved in healthcare, the lives and well-being of patients depend on the expertise and abilities of healthcare professionals. Regularly honing your skills ensures that you can identify and react to critical situations promptly and effectively, minimizing the risk of errors and maximizing patient outcomes. Additionally, by staying on top of your skills and knowledge, you enhance your professional reputation and build trust among your colleagues and patients. Finally, continual skill development also opens opportunities for professional growth and advancement, both within the clinic and the broader healthcare field. Overall, keeping your skills sharp is crucial for providing the highest standard of care, ensuring patient safety, and fostering your own professional growth in a health clinic.

Let’s learn August’s Training Tips!

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Practice Management

Clinical

If you are a clinical employee and you do not have access to ImmTrac please reach out to your home site vaccine coordinator to request this. 

Lab

Outstanding labs must be checked daily!

 

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Obviously, we are Here to Help!

For any questions or concerns, please contact Jeannie Delgado jedelgado@healthpoint-tx.com.

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Meet our Chief Executive Officer, Terri Sabella, RN BSN JD PhD CPHQ

Terri Sabella, RN, JD, PhD is currently the Chief Executive Officer of HealthPoint, a Federally Qualified Health Center providing high-quality primary care, including medical, behavioral health, and dental services, to over 48,500 unique individuals at 24 clinic sites in the Brazos Valley region of Texas and beyond (02/2021-Present). She is also the immediate past-Board chairperson for Qsource, a nonprofit quality organization.

Prior to joining HealthPoint, Dr. Sabella was the CEO of the Tennessee Primary Care Association, providing training, technical assistance, and advocacy to health centers as the membership organization for FQHCs across the state of Tennessee (05/2018-02/2021). She first joined the FQHC/health center movement in 2011 with CommUnityCare in Austin, Texas, holding numerous leadership roles including General Counsel, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Nursing Officer, and Interim Chief Executive Officer (04/2011-08/2017).

Dr. Sabella is a registered nurse with specialized training through the Critical Care Trauma Nurse Internship at Parkland Health & Hospital System (PHHS) in Dallas, Texas. She practiced from 1996-2011 in the trauma department, emergency department, and surgical intensive care unit at PHHS. In addition, she has been a Health Care Attorney since 2005 and practiced in a variety of settings including the Rogaliner Law Firm (12/2005-04/2011), CommUnityCare, and the Sabella Law Firm, PLLC (09/2017-05/2018).

She holds a BSN from the University of Texas at Austin School of nursing, a JD from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law, and a PhD in healthcare management and health policy from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health. Her expertise in quality improvement is recognized by the National Association for Healthcare Quality with certification as a Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ).

Welcome to the HealthPoint – Caldwell Clinic Photography Contest Page!

Welcome to the HealthPoint – Caldwell Clinic photography contest rules page. Participants agree to abide by the following rules when submitting photographs for contest consideration:

Eligibility

THE PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST BEGINS JULY 10, 2023

Are you an aspiring photographer? HealthPoint – Caldwell Clinic is having a photography contest during National Health Center Week.

Photography Contest

This year’s theme is “The Roadmap to a Stronger America,” so we’re looking for original photography that focuses on local places and the roads that get us there!

Here’s all the information and guidelines you need to know about the contest:

• Dates: The contest opens July 11, and the submission deadline is July 31 at 5 PM.
• Theme: “The Roadmap to a Stronger America” – Original photography that focuses on local people, places, and the roads that lead you there.
• Where to submit your photographs: You must complete the registration form to be entered into the contest! 
  • After completing the form, your photographs can be emailed to BurlesonCoArt@HealthPoint-Tx.com, or a flash drive can be dropped off at HealthPoint – Caldwell Clinic beginning July 10.
  • Please be sure to include contact information if you drop off a flash drive.  We prefer you submit your photographs over email.
• Size requirements: If chosen as a finalist, your photography will be displayed in a 2:3 aspect ratio print (portrait or landscape, based on your stated preference).
• Age groups: All age groups are welcome!
• Judging: All entries will be grouped together for judging. There could be multiple winners!
• Finalists will be notified on August 1st by phone/email.  All finalists will have their photographs printed for display and final voting on the following days:
  • Caldwell Clinic – Wednesday, August 9, 2023 – 4 PM – 7 PM
• Prizes: There is a prize for the winner(s)!
• Displaying the photographs: During judging, printed photographs will be displayed at the hosting clinic.  If chosen, your photograph(s) will become part of the permanent decorations for the clinic!

Contest Entry Guidelines

1. You must complete the registration form to be entered into the contest. 
2. No Copyright Infringement.
3. All work must be released for HealthPoint usage.
   1. By submitting your original photograph, you authorize HealthPoint to post your entry on our site indefinitely and grant HealthPoint the right to use and display your original work for marketing purposes.
4. All entries must contain copyright-free photographs. 
5. If you are under the age of 18, your parent or legal guardian must agree to the above. 
6. Contest entries must be submitted in either .JPG or .PNG.
7. No Limit To Entries.
8. Technical Difficulties/Support – HealthPoint cannot be responsible for entries not received due to technical issues and accepts no responsibility for technical support of any entries.
9. HealthPoint Reserves The Sole Right To Adjust Contest Rules Without Notifying Contestants.
10. HealthPoint Is Not Responsible For Damage To Computer Equipment During emails.

Thank you for participating!

One of our 2022 photography contest winners is featured below!

 

Welcome to July 2023 Training Tips!

Welcome to the July Training Tips blog post.

We’re back with a few Training Tips from the Training and Development department! This month, you’ll get reminders about obtaining patient identifying information, verifying insurance or eligibility, HealthPoint Emergency Codes, and monthly lab controls. 

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Practice Management

Front Desk – always remember to verify patient info. With each contact with the patient, we always want to verify all info in eCW is still accurate. This helps with giving us the opportunity to provide the best care possible for all our patients. 

Obtaining the Patient’s Name and DOB: 

Look up patients using their DOB. It is a more unique identifier and is best for helping us protect the patient’s identity. Because it is unique, we can ensure we are entering information into the correct chart and maintaining HIPAA compliance.  

Verify Patient Phone Number and Address: 

After locating the patient, verify their phone number and address from the Patient Information screen.  While you can view a patient’s demographics from the HUB, verifying information from the Patient Information screen readily allows you to make any necessary changes.  Remember, when verifying the patient’s information, it is important to ask open ended questions, not leading ones. (In other words, NEVER ask pt, “is your number still the 979-XXX-XXXX” Always ask them to verify, “Can you verify you phone number for me, please?”) 

Verify Patient Insurance and/or Program Eligibility Status 

It is important to verify that a patient’s insurance and/or program eligibility are current when scheduling an appointment and offer a GFE, If needed.  

If a patient’s insurance or program eligibility expires prior to their appointment (if scheduling), they will be responsible for the full fee of that appointment.  Additionally, if they end up cancelling their appointment due to their inability to pay, it becomes a missed opportunity to have scheduled another patient.  

If they have 3rd party insurance Medicare, Medicaid, or Private Insurance, verify and update if needed.  

If the patient has HealthPoint Programs, be sure to verify that the program is still active. If not, schedule for them to renew with eligibility specialist.  

Clinical

Please remember your emergency codes. If you are not aware of your part in a code process, please speak to your managers.

Lab

Please remember to complete your monthly controls. We know that staffing looks a little different during the summers with employees out on vacation. Please make sure that someone is designated to complete this task by the first week of the month.

 

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Obviously, we are Here to Help!

For any questions or concerns, please contact Jeannie Delgado jedelgado@healthpoint-tx.com.

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Welcome to the July Compliance Blog Post!

We are back with a Compliance Blog Post for July 2023. This month we are talking about HIPAA and the ongoing commitment we have at HealthPoint to protect Patient Health Information. As part of HealthPoint’s ongoing HIPAA Security Program, Brian Thurston and Katherine Hall (the HIPAA Security and Privacy Officers) are sending out quarterly HIPAA reminders. To kick off the second Quarter of 2023, we will be discussing what happens when a HIPAA Breach Occurs! 

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What happens when a HIPAA Breach Occurs? 

HIPAA breaches are investigated and enforced by the Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR). Breaches can either be reported to OCR by a healthcare entity, or via a complaint from an individual. OCR enforces HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules by investigating complaints, conducting compliance reviews, and performing outreach and education to help covered entities (health plans, healthcare providers, pharmacies, etc) remain in compliance with changing rules. When OCR receives a complaint, or notification of a breach, they will investigate to determine if the covered entity violated any requirements. In the event of noncompliance, OCR will work with the organization to solve the matter though corrective action or another avenue. 

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In cases where the noncompliance is not solved, there can be civil penalties for the covered entity. Those penalties can include:

• HIPAA violation: Unknowing Penalty range: $100 – $50,000 per violation, with an annual maximum of $25,000 for repeat violations 
• HIPAA violation: Reasonable Cause Penalty range: $1,000 – $50,000 per violation, with an annual maximum of $100,000 for repeat violations 
• HIPAA violation: Willful neglect but violation is corrected within the required time period. Penalty range: $10,000 – $50,000 per violation, with an annual maximum of $250,000 for repeat violations 
• HIPAA violation: Willful neglect and is not corrected within the required time period. Penalty range: $50,000 per violation, with an annual maximum of $1.5 million 

The dollar amount associated with each penalty has to do with the number of records impacted, the type of breach, and the type of information that was compromised. In the cases where information was knowingly disclosed inappropriately, there can be criminal penalties for the individual responsible including fines of up to $50,000 and up to a year in prison. 

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Want to learn more about HIPAA?

If you enjoy learning more, I highly recommend checking out the OCR HIPAA News Releases and Bulletins on the HHS website where they post recent fines and judgments related to HIPAA breaches. 

 

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We are Here to Help!

If you have any questions about any of these, please feel free to reach out to our Medical Coder, Lena Sadler, via Teams and/or email at 

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Welcome to the June HR Blog Post!

We are happy to have you here for the June HR Blog! Recently we asked you to complete a pulse survey. It is a midyear check-in for how we are doing on specific topics our Texas Association of Community Health Centers measures for ALL Community Health Centers once per year. It allows us to see where we have room to improve. THANK YOU for completing the survey. We cannot improve without your feedback.

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What were the results?

Let’s start with the great stuff: You told us your hard work is being recognized. WHOOP!

 

You said you feel like HealthPoint works well as a cohesive team! DOUBLE WHOOP!

The survey question related to interdepartmental communication remains an area where we have room for improvement. 

 

Interdepartmental communication is when a business’s departments communicate with each other. They may share information about projects, adjustments to inventory, marketing, or patient care protocols. Basically, anything that may affect more than one department is communicated thoroughly and at regular intervals so everyone knows what to expect.

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What is next?

In an effort to improve this score, and your overall experience at HealthPoint, we’ve created an Interdepartmental Communications Form. We need to hear from YOU on how we can improve, what your expectations are, and specific situations where you felt like you were left in the dark. 

Please take the time to fill out the form and give us your feedback.

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We are Here to Help!

As always, if you have any questions about this survey or the improvement strategy, please contact: HR@HealthPoint-Tx.com 

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Welcome to the June Compliance Blog Post!

We are back with a Compliance Blog Post for June 2023. This month we are giving you a Peek Behind the Medical Coding Curtain and talking about Evaluation and Management visits.

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What is Medical Coding?

Medical coding is the task of assigning standardized diagnosis and procedure codes to a patient visit to accurately describe the patient’s condition, their treatment, and anything else done during the visit such as small procedures, lab tests, or vaccinations. The most common “codes” HealthPoint uses are for the office visit itself, using Evaluation and Management (E&M) codes. Almost every patient visit at HealthPoint has an E&M service, where the provider speaks with the patient and makes decisions on how to diagnose/treat the patient.  

Clicking on any of the links in this email could download harmful viruses to your computer, and inputting credentials could lead to your account being hacked.

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Can you explain more about E&M Visits? 

The correct E&M code to use varies based on the medical complexity of a patient, which can be described by the providers’ level of “Medical Decision Making”, or MDM, during the visit. The MDM level for a visit can be found by asking two questions: “What is the risk that the patient’s condition will threaten their life or bodily function if left untreated?” and “What is the risk that the treatment of this condition will threaten their life or bodily function?”. The higher the level of risk involved in the patient visit, the higher the MDM level, and the higher the level of E&M service assigned to the visit.  

 

That is a lot to remember. Do you have a “cheat sheet”? 

Some of our providers use the following card to find the correct E&M code quickly. The E&M codes are in green and organized by the level of MDM: minimal risk, low risk, moderate risk, and high risk. Below each section are a few examples of types of injuries/illnesses in each risk category and their treatments.

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E&M Coding Card Front:

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E&M Coding Card Back:

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We are Here to Help!

If you have any questions about any of these, please feel free to reach out to our Medical Coder, Lena Sadler, via Teams and/or email at LenaSadler@healthpoint-tx.com 

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