Pediatric Practice Management Conference

July 19, 2007

Put your practice ahead of the curve with expert guidance from PCC. Choose from among eight courses designed to improve your office flow, coding practices, and reimbursement.

PCC's annual Pediatric Practice Management Conference for managing providers and staff will be held at the Sheraton Burlington, Vermont. Register by June 15 and save $50. Space is limited.

Certified Professional Coders can earn up to 4.5 CEUs--see the schedule for qualifying courses.

Course Descriptions

Keynote Address: The Business of Pediatrics: What's New in 2007 and Beyond

Explore the impact of the many changes facing pediatricians in 2007 and beyond with PCC's Chip Hart. We'll discuss the potential effects on your practice of Health Savings Accounts and the return to an indemnity insurance atmosphere, pediatric supergroups, and more. Learn about some of the changes you will need to make to assure your practice succeeds in the face of the changing pediatric business climate.

Hiring and Retaining a Stellar Staff

Learn what motivates your employees and how you can harness that knowledge to develop a practice that retains high performing employees. Rosemarie Nelson will help you to understand the elements of managing individuals' needs and establishing policies and procedures to mitigate conflict within your practice. You'll learn how to identify hidden agendas within conflict situations and discover fallback positions. Understand the communication skills essential to build rapport and gather information in the resolution process. Also learn how to develop processes and procedures to build collaboration and develop relationships among team members.

Telephone Triage Design and Implementation

A successful triage program improves the quality of care for your patients. Learn how to design a telephone triage program that works for your patients, your nurses, and your providers. Incorporate telephone triage standards and select and implement protocols appropriate for use in your practice setting with Carol Rutenberg's expert guidance. Carol Rutenberg, RN, MNSc, founder of Telephone Triage Consulting, speaks nationally on telephone triage management.

Internal Chart Audits

Get E&M code-savvy with Donelle Holle, R.N.. Master the elements of Evaluation and Management procedural codingtime, history, physical exam, and medical decision-makingand what is needed to justify a level of care. Learn what is required in a detailed history and an expanded problem focused history. Discover what comprises the medical decision making component of E&M coding. Donelle will show you how to take advantage of your new coding skills to perform basic internal audits of your charts.

This course has prior approval of the American Academy of Professional Coders for 1.5 Continuing Education Units. Granting of this approval in no way constitutes endorsement by the Academy of the program, content or the program sponsor.

Chronic Disease Management

Simplify the complex coding and administrative tasks associated with chronic disease management. Dr. Herschel Lessin has developed templates in a variety of chronic disease areas, including asthma, ADHD, obesity, diabetes, and headache, that will help simplify this process for you. He'll review each of these templates, and the philosophy of coding and documentation for repeat visits with associated procedures, to help you get paid fairly for these important visits.

Pediatric Coding Updates for 2007

Change your coding practices and improve reimbursement! Let coding expert Donelle Holle, R.N. lead you through the coding changes for 2007 and help you with complex coding issues, such as the proper use of modifiers, coding for after-hours visits, and monitoring the bundling of services.

This course has prior approval of the American Academy of Professional Coders for 3.0 Continuing Education Units. Granting of this approval in no way constitutes endorsement by the Academy of the program, content or the program sponsor.

Effective Communication Techniques

Rosemarie Nelson, MS, Principal for MGMA Health Care Consulting Group, shares her best tips for clear, effective communication with your colleagues and staff. Learn the best ways to say what you mean and mean what you say, run effective meetings, and maintain control in difficult conversations.

Bright Futures

Dr. Joseph F. Hagan, Jr. is a committee chairperson of the AAP's Bright Futures initiative. Bright Futures promotes the preventive care and overall health of infants, children, adolescents, and their families through consensus and education. Dr. Hagan will discuss the latest findings and recommendations of Bright Futures aimed at maiximizing your time and the quality of care you provide at each well visit.

Liability in the Medical Practice

What should you do if a lawsuit presents itself to you? Pediatric malpractice litigation expert, Dr. Herschel Lessin, will share his insight on how to successfully navigate the litigation process. He'll provide an overview of the malpractice process, ways to avoid being sued and the factors that often precipitate suits. Learn how to get assistance in all aspects of your defense, the difference between the rules of the courtroom and the rules of the exam room, and how to behave in a deposition and trial.

About the Instructors

Chip Hart

Chip Hart, Director of PCC's Pediatric Solutions consulting group, has over 17 years of experience in helping hundreds of pediatricians increase their reimbursement by providing tools and services aimed at improving their coding practices.

Carol Rutenberg, RN, MNSc

Carol Rutenberg, R.N., MNSc, of Telephone Triage Consulting, presents a three-hour course on designing and implementing a telephone triage program for nurses. Carol has vast clinical and administrative experience as an emergency department director, continuous quality improvement coordinator, cardiovascular/special care nursing educator, and staff development instructor.

Rosemarie Nelson, MS

Rosemarie Nelson, Principal Consultant for Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), returns to PCC's conference in 2007 to share her expertise in human resource management in private practice. Rosemarie's experience as a medical office manager and in information technology, combined with her years of consulting to physicians and practice professionals gives her a unique insight into the needs and challenges facing pediatricians today. She is a published author on practice management issues and her presentations and publications are well received by practices nationwide.

Donelle Holle, R.N.

Donelle Holle, R.N., of PedsCoding.com, joins PCC again this year to help you implement the latest coding updates, improve your documentation, and seek greater reimbursement for services provided. Donelle has over 25 years of experience in helping hundreds of pediatricians achieve financial success by coding accurately for all services.

Herschel Lessin, M.D.

Herschel R. Lessin, M.D., a founding member of The Children's Medical Group in Poughkeepsie, NY, shares his expertise in the areas of chronic disease management mitigating liability in private pediatric practice. Dr. Lessin has been a practicing pediatrician since 1982. He received his Doctor of Medicine from Stanford University and completed three years of pediatric residency training at Yale-New Haven Hospital. Dr. Lessin was a founding member of the 2000 physician member Taconic IPA and served as chairman for 14 years. Dr. Lessin has served as an expert witness in malpractice litigation since 1987 and regularly presents on the topic for pediatric professionals.

Joseph F. Hagan, M.D., F.A.A.P.

Joseph F. Hagan, Jr., M.D., F.A.A.P., of Hagan and Rinehart Pediatricians, South Burlington, VT, is co-chair of the AAP Bright Futures initiative. Dr. Hagan received his Doctor of Medicine from Georgetown University in 1976. He is Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at University of Vermont College of Medicine. He has received numerous awards and honors for his work with the AAP and for his distinctive service in Vermont communities.

Location and Accommodations

The conference is held at the Sheraton Burlington Hotel and Conference Center in Burlington, VT. Call the hotel toll-free at 1-800-325-3535 (reference Physician's Computer Company when booking rooms). The PCC room block rate for a single/double room is $132/night plus taxes and is available on a first-come, first-served basis until June 16, 2007. The Sheraton is a smoke-free hotel; therefore, only non-smoking rooms are available.

The Sheraton provides a complimentary shuttle to and from the Burlington International Airport (BTV). You'll also find most of the major car rental agencies at or near the airport, as well as local taxi services.

Register now