In The Loop - P & P

World Class Customer Service

2011-11-07T08:46:00.000-08:00

Last week, 8 of us from P & P drove 6 hours to attend the World Class Customer Service Summit in Cleveland, Ohio. We spent two days filling our heads and our notebooks with information and ideas about customer service. Speakers from a variety of companies and causes, with a variety of stories, came to inspire, to teach, and to motivate us to serve our clients in a way that can only be described as world class.

Moshe, Corey, Liz, Matt, Jeanette, and Chris with some new friends we met at the conference: Leanne, Dr. David, and, of course, the Chick-fil-a cow.

Over the next few months, we'll be doing our best to implement some of the ideas we've heard. World Class Customer Service takes time to develop, but we're absolutely committed to bringing the principles behind it to P & P and the EMR industry. As we work towards an improved customer service experience, we want to hear what you have to say. Have you experience good customer service from one of our employees? Have you experienced customer service that could have been much better from someone here at P & P? We want to hear your stories! Send us an email here at marketing@p-pdata.com.

Do Not Fear: EMR Is Here

2011-08-10T10:30:00.000-07:00

Contributed by Liz Pennefather, Account Executive

As you’re reading this, you might be thinking, “How would a massage therapist get involved in the EMR industry?” When I accepted the job offer here with P & P Data Systems, I thought the exact same thing. But I was so excited to become involved in something that really has the power to help revolutionize the healthcare profession for the future, at all levels.

I was working at a clinical practice, and started to see a bit of a pattern. In a multidisciplinary practice, a few practitioners would often see the same patients in the same day. We were constantly tracking each other down to find the patient chart and enter our notes. We would need to review history and progress of the patient, any new information we received (i.e. diagnostic imaging results, or letters from physicians and surgeons) and any insurance information, as our billing was not connected with OHIP. Many times charts would go missing, were not filed, or quickly became damaged and worn because of storage issues. I’ll never forget the day my boss ordered another filing cabinet because we had so many patient charts…our storage room became a file room.

I had heard about EMR from a couple of friends working in the business, and didn’t even realize that my own family doctor was using a system. What a fantastic idea! No more lost charts, instant access with the ability to enter notes from a terminal in the office or treatment room, and consistently updated information with everyone’s notes and pertinent information. Genius!

I know what you might be thinking. Some of these systems are so complicated and full of information that initially you feel intimidated about how to navigate or do a simple standard SOAP or progress note while you are with the patient. I felt exactly the same way when I first started my training with P & P. However, as I became more familiar with the system, I saw how organized it can make things. Through your choice of our templates, acronym narrative entry or even Dragon dictation, patient information is permanently added to the note in such a way that changes, deletions, and additions can be tracked.

The best parts? No difficulty interpreting anyone’s hand writing, no lost post-it notes and no fumbling through paper charts of previous encounters. All the necessary information is neatly displayed and accessible with tabs. Just a couple of clicks away, you can find all the patient’s visits in chronological order. The user/practitioner decides what information in the cumulative patient profile should be quickly accessible. It’s the same for reviewing lab results, and writing prescriptions, and providing pamphlets or information for patients: just a few clicks of the mouse. CIS is well-rounded and complete too: registering a patient, booking appointments, and billing are completed with ease. Nothing is ever lost: everything can be easily communicated through the integrated interoffice email-like system.

It does seem unnerving, and it is a huge undertaking to move from paper to EMR, but it is achievable. The training is done in stages, and very interactive so learning is maximized. It’s not disruptive to the clinical practice; the best advice I can give is to start off slow and integrate each aspect in good time. Going paperless does not happen immediately; there will still be some coming in and out, but as time passes, it will definitely be reduced, and as a result, you will save lots of time for the administrative staff. Eventually, you will see the results: better attention to running the practice, and most importantly, better patient care.

Goodbye Dave!

2011-07-28T11:33:00.000-07:00

The help desk is missing one of its many voices this week. After 5 years of dedicated customer service, Dave, Help Desk expert extraordinaire and Team Lead, has moved on to new pastures. Dave has been an integral part of the P & P support team and many of our clients have become familiar with his voice and patient, helpful ways. He will definitely be missed, but we wish him all the best in his new adventures.

Don't be a stranger, Dave!

What's New?

2011-06-22T07:42:00.000-07:00

Congratulations!

With the recent departures as mentioned in our last post, we have turned to our own ranks to find the people to fill the holes left behind by the loss of a member of our management team. Within the numbers of our current employees, there is a lot of talent, and a few specific people who are well-suited to some new roles.

Brad Dick: Brad has been working with P & P for many years now as the Project Team Manager. In his new role as P & P's Chief Experience Officer (CXO), Brad is keeping some of his old responsibilities and duties. However, his main role is now with the help desk as the manager of the support staff.

John Boyce: John is officially returning to the support department, where he began his P & P career on help desk 10 years ago. While he will still be helping out with all the additional projects we've got on the go, John's main role as our Senior Solutions Specialist will involve helping our support staff with all the more complicated situations. With years of experience with databases and troubleshooting, we're sure you'll be pleased with the addition of John to the team.

Chuck Chau: Chuck's role too, has not so much changed, as expanded. He still takes on all the responsibilities of his previous role as the director of the Account Management department. However, in addition to those responsibilities, he has also added our on-site technicians to his team. He now manages all of the P & P employees that you may encounter in your offices and clinics.

Thank you for your patience with us as we go through this transition.

A Few Goodbyes

2011-06-22T07:22:00.000-07:00

Over the past month or so, we have undergone a number of changes here at the P & P office. One of our long-time employees and manager of support, Aaron Judd, resigned from his position in order to pursue a new direction for his career. Aaron dedicated 14 years to P & P and we are grateful for his expertise and dedication to this company. Aaron was the person you went to for answers and to get this done. As he begins a new chapter of his career, we wish him nothing but the best, but he will certainly be missed.

Additionally, if you have called into help desk recently, you may have missed a familiar voice. Jessica Nakamura has also chosen to move on from P & P. Jessica was with us for almost a year and, during that time, worked tirelessly to help our clients to the best of her ability. She too will be missed.

With these major changes in the company, we are doing our best to re-organize and fill the holes left behind. Please be a little patient with us as we find the best way to make sure you receive the best customer service possible.

Introducing: Liz!

2011-05-12T08:35:00.000-07:00

Our newest employee is hoping to hit the ground running. Liz joined the sales team just a few weeks ago and is working hard to learn CIS so she can get out on the road and talking to potential clients. And she’s learning fast! In no time, she’ll be able to answer the most complicated questions just as well as anyone who’s been in the industry for years.

Over her career, Liz’s aspirations and goals have changed and evolved and, as a result, her experience is wide and varied. She’s done TV and broadcasting, sales, and massage therapy. Now, she’s back in sales, and learning a whole new industry, but she is still practicing to keep her accreditation as a registered massage therapist.

Liz loves to travel and has been to a total of 7 countries, 8 Canadian provinces and 18 of the states to the south of us. She also has a big heart for disaster relief and healthcare concerns. She regularly volunteers to help out and fundraise for events. Sports, all sports, hold a special place in her life. She plays tennis and occasionally sails, but her true enjoyment of sports comes from watching in the stands and getting into the spirit and energy of the game. Though she insists she doesn’t paint her face – anymore – she does own a Blue Jays foam finger and a blue Maple Leafs wig.

Once Liz finds her bearings in a brand new industry, you’ll see her around quite a bit as she starts visiting potential clients and following up on your questions about our EMR software.

Introducing: Jolene!

2011-05-12T08:19:00.000-07:00

If you have called to talk to our leader, CEO, and president in the last few weeks, you may have been surprised to be greeted by a new voice. Jolene, or Jo as we in the office have quickly become accustom to calling her, has a hefty task in front of her, but one we’re confident she’s taking head on. Replacing Jen, Moe’s long-time executive assistant -- who is thoroughly enjoying her maternity leave -- is not an easy accomplishment, but so far, Jo has fit right into the role. She’s been with the company for only a couple months, but already she’s getting comfortable keeping everything on track and on task.

Jo is pretty new to the GTA: a little more than a year ago, she packed up her adorable puppy, Milo, and followed a new job to Toronto in search of some adventure and a fresh change of scenery. We’re very glad she’s found her way to us!

Thank You!

2011-05-12T07:59:00.000-07:00

The Primary Care Today show was a resounding success! We always enjoy the chance to meet our current clients as well as any physicians or clinic representatives who are interested in learning about our software. Thank you for coming to visit our booth and for taking the time to chat with us about our product. We hope you are as excited about the future of healthcare and EMR systems as we are.

For those of you who entered our draw for the iPad2, don't forget to book your demo before July 1st, which is when the draw will be taking place. We appreciate any chance we can get to show off our software; we know it doesn't disappoint.

The Benefits of an EMR System: The Intangibles

2011-04-21T09:20:00.000-07:00

Direct savings and hidden savings can quantified. It may be difficult, but with some attention to detail, the savings and benefits can be added up and recognized. However, there many benefits that cannot be translated into a cash value but, in the end, are just as real and just as important.

Privacy and Security

An electronic management system allows only authorized users to access their work and associated data. Medical records can be secured, and routed only to those with a need to access the data. Alternatively, extraordinary measures would be necessary to implement office procedures designed to protect such documents. If a user is assigned a difficult case, they must handle it, or pass it to someone who can. Work cannot just disappear. The automated audit trail (history) leaves an indelible record of who, what, where and when during each step of the workflow as documents and information are being processed.

Improved Service

Access to information is instantaneous and staff or referring physicians can book exams easily over the web. The frequent administrative use of the phone and fax to book and confirm appointments can be reduced or eliminated, so staff can concentrate on more productive and rewarding office work.

Employee Satisfaction

When computerized workflow systems were in there infancy, there was fear that users would feel oppressed and dissatisfied by being directed by a computer. The actual experience is in fact just the opposite; users became more satisfied with their work. Workplace experts recognized that the optimum work environment was to select the one most important piece of work (assigning suitable work- the right thing), and complete it (feeling a sense of accomplishment), before moving on to the next item.

Organizational Options

There can be certain advantages to performing certain work in a particular location. Local labor markets, tax incentives and real estate resources can vary widely from location to location, and indeed internationally. Information portability is much more efficient and so work can be performed at any location and outside normal business hours. Indeed the physical office space can be significantly reduced because the paper file burden can be minimized or eliminated. This is of a particular concern to physicians and other healthcare professionals that rely heavily on paper records and are required by law to archive and store all patient files for extended periods of time.

Contributed by Ted Barrington.

The Benefits of an EMR System: The Benefits You Might Not Notice

2011-04-08T10:02:00.000-07:00

The direct cost savings are readily measured and recognized. But there is another set of benefits that are real and valuable but are very difficult to measure, sometimes called the hidden savings or soft savings.

Control

One of the problems of manual work management is that the most experienced people are also expert at finding the easy work, making their productivity appear even higher. Yet they are the ones who should be handling the hardest cases that a beginner might struggle with for a long time. A workflow system ensures the cases/work is assigned to the most appropriate worker.

Monitoring

Practically all systems include reporting and analysis tools that can be used by a manager to make informed decisions regarding business processes. Some examples include the total work accomplished, the volume, turn-around time, client response times, patient outcomes etc.

Management

Managers can expand the span of their supervisory control, spend more time improving workers skills and have more time to help with the most demanding cases. With an EMR, routine reporting, data collection and the assignment of work now becomes an automated function of the workflow management system. Implementation necessarily increases the qualitative nature of a manager’s contribution to an organization.

Process Improvement Opportunity

To realize productivity improvements sometimes a process should be completely taken apart and redesigned, akin to tearing down a house and rebuilding it anew. This is an expensive proposition but here lies the greatest potential for organizational improvements when implementing a computerized workflow system. Dramatic changes to a work process can be traumatic for users; however most workers recognize the improved process and can migrate to the new system with far less training. The examination and reengineering of the current workflow is inevitable when an organization or team is committed to employing a computerized management system.

The Benefits of an EMR System: Money, Money, Money

2011-04-01T07:38:00.000-07:00

There aren't too many people who would say they don't want any more money. In fact, the expense of an electronic medical record system is one of the things that causes physicians and clinics to hesitate when it comes time to adopt a system. Even with the funding available from OntarioMD, the cost of an EMR system can seem overwhelming.

But what if an EMR system can actually save a clinic money? Over time, the system will pay for itself. While the direct cost savings can be substantial, they aren't likely to cover the cost of the system -- right away, that is. But, over time, the direct savings will build up.

How, exactly? You will no longer need as many staff members to perform tasks that can now be completed automatically or more efficiently using the EMR system. And, once implemented and used, the reporting functionalities built into and EMR system can help you properly allocate your resources so that money is being spent as effectively and efficiently as possible.

Of course, these direct cost savings only scratch the surface of the benefits an EMR system can bring to your clinic. Stay tuned over the next couple bog posts as we cover some of the other benefits, noticeable or not.

(Contributed by Ted Barrington)

2011-03-30T07:19:00.000-07:00

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Upcoming Trade Shows

2011-03-22T07:51:00.000-07:00

Trade show and showcases can be busy, chaotic places, but we always enjoy the chance to be involved. They give us a chance to keep in touch with our clients and potential clients and meet some of the people we provide our EMR and clinical management services to.

Trade shows and showcases give us a chance to show off our product, but they're even more useful for anyone considering adopting an EMR. Take the opportunity to see all the vendors in one place so you can easily compare all your options. Our hope is that you'll leave feeling confident in your understanding of the EMR industry as you set out to make a tough decision.

Coming up over the next few months, P & P, with our powerful clinical management and EMR system, the Clinical Information System (CIS), will be at two showcases and one trade show.

OntarioMD Showcases

OntarioMD hosts a series of EMR Adoption Information Sessions and Vendor Showcases to increase awareness of the EMR Adoption Funding Program. Come on by to learn about the funding and drop by our booth for a demo of our OntarioMD certified product.

Showcase #1

When: April 7, 2011

5:30 pm - 9:30 pm

Where: Vaughan, Ontario

Details to follow soon.

Showcase #2

When: May 11, 2011
5:30 pm - 9:30 pm

Where: Ajax, Ontario

Details to follow soon.

Note:

OntarioMD hosts these showcases for physicians and clinics in set geographic areas. If you are in the area of one of these showcases and did not receive an invitation, contact OntarioMD as soon as possible.

Primary Care Today

Education Conference and Medical Exposition

When: May 5 to 7

Where: Hall 5 of the International Centre

6900 Airport Road, Mississauga, Ontario

Come visit us at booth 515! We're looking forward to a chance to see old friends and make plenty of new ones. At the Primary Care Today Show, you'll have a chance to talk with an account manager, view a demo of our software, and learn about any of the exciting new features we have come up.

Whether you come visit us at a showcase or the trade show, be sure to request a demo. After you view a demo of our product, your name will be entered into a draw to win an iPad 2!

For more details about any of these shows, or about the draw for the iPad 2, feel free to contact us at marketing@p-pdata.com.

Meet the Help Desk: Jessica

2011-03-14T07:13:00.001-07:00

The Jester of Jive: Jessica

Without a doubt, Jessica is the quirkiest one of the bunch. She is the newest member of help desk, but she fit right in from day one. She is a self-confessed organization geek, but, on the opposite end of the spectrum, would love nothing better than to have the chaos and crazy fun of a bouncy castle at her birthday party (though, she might make all her guests line up alphabetically for their turns). She’s P & P’s local celebrity: you might remember her flawless performance in the very important role of a grade 1 student in the movie Billy Madison.

Congratulations!

2011-03-12T06:19:00.000-08:00

We'd like to take a moment to congratulate Moe's assistant Jennifer Greenspan and her husband David on the birth of their first son, Joshua Izzy. Born this morning at 5:58, weighing 6lbs 8oz.

Congratulations to the proud new parents. We all can't wait to see pictures!

Meet the Help Desk: Shazana

2011-03-11T07:52:00.000-08:00

The Siren of Support, Shazana Ali

Shazana came to Canada from the wonderful island of Trinidad and Tobago when she was 8. She’s been back twice since then to visit her many aunts and uncles who still live on the tropical island. She's been working for P & P on the help desk for almost 2 years -- 1 year and 7 months to be exact.

Shazana brings all the pieces of help desk together: she balances Jessica’s eccentricity, compliments Mark’s cheerful friendliness, and supports Dave’s steady patience. She has a bit of a sweet tooth; her desk is never complete without a huge box of nerds beside her computer. At a recent P & P potluck, Shazana proved her mastery of the kitchen with a delicious custard dessert that impressed everyone. She would love to be a part-time chef someday and definitely has the culinary talent for it.

Meet the Help Desk: Mark

2011-03-07T12:28:00.000-08:00

The Softy of Support, Mark

If you ever need some cheering up, Mark is the one to call. He started with P & P shortly after Dave and is coming up on his 4 year P & P anniversary this September. He’s a big teddy bear, always ready with a joke and a smile to brighten your day. His fellow help-desk friends dub him the Comic Relief of Help Desk, the one that keeps them cheerful even on the coldest, gloomiest of winter days. He’s a talkative, sensitive fellow; he grew up with 5 sisters, an upbringing that is directly reflected in his unique personality.

Meet the Help Desk: Dave

2011-03-01T10:00:00.000-08:00

You may have talked to our help desk staff on a number of occasions. You probably have pictures of them in your mind, images based on the sound of their voices. But who are the help desk staff really? Over the next few weeks, we're going to introduce them to you, one at a time, so you can finally connect the helpful voice to the person on the other end of the phone line.

The Smooth Silky Voice of Dave Anthony

Dave loves sushi, basketball and long walks on the beach. He’s a little bit petrified of dogs, even the small, cuddly kind. Dave is the nucleus of help desk, the one everyone turns to when they can’t quite figure out a problem themselves. With 5 years at P&P under his belt, Dave has been on the help desk the longest. With his patient and steady nature, he’s always willing to help find a solution as long has he’s not caught up in the most recent episode of the Young and the Restless. And Dave really does love basketball: his dream room would have nothing in it but a full-sized basketball court.

Welcome to our Blog

2011-02-23T10:03:00.000-08:00

Welcome to "In The Loop", the new blog dedicated to providing the latest news and information about P & P Data Systems Inc, and the Clinic Information System.

This blog will allow P & P staff to communicate news and information on a regular basis for not only our clients, but potential clients as well. Further to this, we will be opening up to any existing client to author their own posts to relay their experiences, questions, comments, tips or tricks.

This blog is intended to go live on March 1 2011.