August 15, 2005 to October 13, 2005

Last chance to learn to "Go Chartless"

October 21 and 22, Orlando Florida

On Friday October 21, 2005, we will present our very well received "Paperless Charting for PracticeWorks users" seminar in Orlando Florida. This may be the last time for quite a while to get the important information that enables you to make the transition to a chartless office with less effot than you would think. Getting rid of your paper charts is actually quite easy and painless using our simple techniques. Come join us in sunny Orlando and be pleasantly surprised how simple it actually is! For more information, click here.

Club Lighthouse Digest

This newsletter represents a summary of the best of what's going on at Club Lighthouse, our on-line community for PracticeWorks users.

To follow the links on this newsletter, you need an account at Club Lighthouse. Existing members should first log into the Club web site directly from this newsletter. Once you are logged in, you can click on any of the links in this newsletter to jump directly to the article or download of interest. To start your web browser now and log into Club Lighthouse, click here! That will open up a browser window on your computer. You can then Alt-Tab back to this e-mail and select any link in this email. Clicking on the link in this email will cause that article or forum post to appear in the browser window (you will have to Alt-Tab BACK to that browser window to see it).

PracticeWorks users who are not yet a member of Club Lighthouse can sign up by clicking here

If you forgot your user name and/or password, send an email to joel@lighthouse-pmg.com



In This Issue
New Articles
New or updated downloads
Interesting posts
Seminar schedule


New Articles
LH Simple Chart Audit
General Description
The conventional wisdom for years among dental consultants has been to do a periodic "chart audit" to deal with patients who have not been seen recently enough to be considered "active" - to reactivate those who can be reactivated, and to retire the charts of those who can't be. In an office with paper charts, this process is often aided by affixing a sticker to the chart that indicates the last year (and sometimes month) that the patient was seen. While this manual system no doubt does SOME good, it has numerous problems: the time of putting the stickers on the charts, the fact that each chart has to be manually reviewed to see what the status is, the fact that it would be pretty difficult to send a letter to the "reactivation candidates", and worst of all, it's very unlikely to be done on a regular basis.

This document describes a simple system for identifying and contacting these patients. It's to be run every Monday (along with the other Lighthouse systems that are designed to be run every Monday) to send a reactivation letter. It can also be run at any time to "clean up" inactive patients, by calling them and either reactivating them or inactivating them. Marking a patient's Clipboard "Inactive" is the only way to drop someone from the system.

 

Chart Retirement Protocol and Checklist
So, you think you're ready to start sending all those old charts to their final resting place? You've either stopped making charts for new patients, or you're ready to stop. Now you just need a little guidance for the next and final phase - dismantling your "wall o' charts" one at a time. This article gives you the procedures and even a detailed checklist to fill out for each chart, to make sure you don't ever need to see it again. (Well, probably not. You might still pull a retired chart once in awhile, but it should be rare.)

 

New or updated downloads
The following is a list of recent additions to the Club Lighthouse download area. It is important to remember that most downloads have a corresponding article or forum post associated with them. If they do, please read the article or post first before downloading the file. Also, for complete instructions on how download and install the files listed here, be sure to read the article on Installing from an Exchange Pack

Various Analysis Experts
Version: 9-4-2003
A collection of Analysis Experts for all kinds of things. Download the whole file and install just the ones you want. The current list is:

  • -Collections for a month, by day of month
  • -Production for a month, by day of month
  • -Appointment time analysis, for hygiene and doctor appointments
  • UPDATED on 6-17-2003: 12 Months Monitors
  • ADDED on 6-27-2003: Referral Report
  • ADDED on 8-8-2003: Insured Party count by Ins Co.
  • UPDATED on 8-18-2003: Split "Checks" column into "Ptn checks" and "Ins checks" on Deposits by Day of Month
  • ADDED on 9-4-2003: Patient Turnover Analysis

    Year End Insurance Benefits Remaining
    Version: 9-28-2003
    Two letters (adult and child) and e-mail versions of each of them, telling patients they have insurance benefits remaining that will be lost at the end of the year. Four AutoLinks on the system-defined Unscheduled Tx Plans Contact Expert. Each AutoLink generates one of the letters / e-mails. Use the "filtering" capability of the Contact Expert to limit who will get this letter. Then the AutoLinks have additional "filtering" capabilities: -Exclude patients with a doctor appointment on the schedule already (if you want to) -Exclude patients with a 60-day old balance (or older) in excess of $X (you specify what X is) -Exclude patients whose remaining insurance benefits aren't at least $Y (you specify what Y is)

    LH Mass Mailing System
    Version: 07-29-2005
    A Contact Expert that lets you find all your active patients, and even your most valuable patients, during a period of time. Used primarily to generate some kind of mass mailing to them all. (Updated 7/29/2005 to exclude inactive RP's.) 5 different "Mass mail" documents: letterhead, plain paper, postcard, mailing label and field export. For detailed instructions on installing and using this sytem, see the article Mailing Something to Everyone.

    Sooner If Possible reminder
    A message that appears each time you schedule an appointment, to remind you to ask the patient if they'd be available on short notice (so you can mark their appointment "Sooner if possible.") It won't display if the appointment is in the very near future (the next three days), or is for a child, or is for a recall appointment for an insured patient, unless the appointment is two weeks or more after the patient's recall due date. See the article Filling holes in the schedule on very short notice for details about using the "Sooner if possible" feature.

    Lighthouse Broken Appointment Management
    Version: 2.0
    A system for tracking the details of broken appointments (reschedules and/or cancels). Allows a patient to be marked "Must pre-pay" or "Do not re-appoint", and then have a message display automatically when future attempts to appoint are made. Also includes a Contact Expert for reviewing cancelation reasons.

    This Exchange Pack is discussed in detail in the article Lighthouse Broken Appointment Management

    UPDATE: Now includes several "Failure to Keep Appointment" letters that automatically generate increasingly firm "you missed your appointment" notifications.

    Schedule Hole Filler
    Version: 1.0
    An appointment related Contact Expert of good candidates for filling holes in your appointment book. This is the download corresponds with the article The Lighthouse Schedule Hole Filler

    A/R Management System
    This is a compilation of many different Forms, Messages, Automation Events, Documents and Contact Experts that help to communicate and enforce a practice's financial policy. Use of this pack is covered in the article Lighthouse A/R management pack

    LH Patient Picture Reminder
    Version: 1.0
    Having a full face picture for each patient can greatly benefit clinical and business staff - as well as impress your patients! This is a check-in reminder to alert staff to patients that need a picture taken.

    Proposed treatment Note Templates
    Version: 9-14-2005
    A set of Note Templates for documenting the reason you've proposed all kinds of treatment, and an AutoLink to every appropriate system-defined button in Charting.

    Install the entire Exchange Pack, and you'll immediately start seeing the Note Templates popping up when you chart proposed treatment.

    The Rx Farm
    Version: 8-15-2005
    A collection of Rx's that aren't in the PW Plus Pack. These simply add to your list of Rx's when you write a new one. (We've also updated the PW Plus Pack Rx's to add the "Phoned in" option that's on all the LH Rx's. To download them, click here.) See the article that describes how to install and use them. 5/4/2005 UPDATE: Added a question for every brand-name drug asking if it's OK to dispense a generic, or "dispense as written." NOTE: If you have already installed any of these Rx's, and you now install the updated version, any changes you might have made to the Form or the Document (such as your practice name in the header) will be overwritten. So update with caution!

    Insurance Benefit Reset Message
    Version: 1.0
    Contact expert, Message, and Automation Events to make sure the Insurance Benefit Reset date is correct

    Completed treatment notes
    Version: 9-14-2005
    A set of notes to document completed treatment. Read the associated Article entitled "Going Chartless Part 4: Completed Treatment Note Templates" for details on installation and use.

    LH Simple Appt Confirmation Pack
    Version: 1
    A Contact Expert, documents and "smart" AutoLinks that make it simple to send a series of appointment confirmation notice in both postcards and e-mail, and to do it once a week. See the Article "A Simple Appointment Confirmation System" by clicking here for all the details.

    LH Sealant Warning
    Version: 1.0
    Autolink and Message attached to sytem defined SEALANT button that will remind clinical staff about "standard" insurance limitations on sealant coverage prior to scheduling. Many plans will not cover sealants on patients prior to their 6th birthday or after the age of 12 (14?) (16?). See Article on How to customize PracticeWorks.

    Medical / dental history
    Version: 08-19-2005
    All the components needed to gather, store, update and review patients' medical and dental history. This is the download companion to the Going Chartless article on collecting Medical/Dental History.

    UPDATED 01-20-04 to add a version of the Patient Info Update document that will print correctly from the patient Clipboard. Also added a few more of the fields from the Medical / Personal History Form to the Patient Info Update document, so patients have even less to hand write on an update. FIXED 1-23-04: One of the document merge variables couldn't be edited by users. Fixed. UPDATED 2-3-2004: Added a checkbox "Review this Form when writing Rx's" to the Medical/Personal History Form. Allows you to "integrate" with the Rx System (pop up this Form every time you look at a patient's Rx History, from the [Rx History] button in Charting). UPDATED: 2-23-2004: The "Last " merge variables at the bottom of the Patient Info Update documents now look at the "Outside x-rays received" Form, in addition to the ledger, to get the most accurate information.

    Monthly Production by Producer
    Version: 1.0
    A version of the Monthly Production Summary Analysis Expert that displays the daily or Month to Date production figures for up to 5 producers in calendar format.

    Unlike the Monthly Production Summary (which lists both daily and MTD numbers on each day summarized by Doctor and Hygiene), this version displays ONLY the daily OR the MTD numbers on each day, but shows individual producers. To switch between daily and MTD display, simply type "Daily" or "MTD" in the green box at the top of the spreadsheet.

    This modification was done in response to a post from a Club member. Click here to see the post.

    LH Future Appt Balance Outstanding
    Version: 1.0
    LH Future Appointments with Balance Outstanding is another contact expert to assist the office with getting AR under control and keeping it under control. It will display all future appointments that have an AGED AR (greater than $10 for 90 days or longer) as well as appointments who entire balance exceeds a user entered amount. These accounts should be carefully reviewed and concerns addressed PRIOR to the appointed time.

    LH Phone call tracking system
    Version: 11-07-2003
    A system for recording and tracking calls the doctor needs to return. Consists of a Form, and Contact Expert and two AutoLinks. See the Article that describes how to install, configure and use it.

    Appt details card printing
    Version: 11-24-2003
    A label document that says the date, time and day of week of an appointment, and an AutoLink to print the label immediately after the appointment is scheduled. Must be used with a single label printer in order to have any value, so the label can be printed and given to the patient. (The "label" should really be a "card" that one of the single label printers can print.) 11-24 update: prints only if the patient has an appointment today, which means they're probably here. (Otherwise, it prints for appointments made over the phone, which doesn't do any good.)

    New Patient Tracking CE
    Version: 12-09-2003
    A Contact Expert of all new patients in a date range, showing the type of the first appointment, the last recall date (if any), the patient's next appointment (if any), and whether or not the patient has a treatment plan. Click here to read the article that describes this system in detail.

    Lab Case Tracking System
    Version: 1.0
    PracticeWorks? has a system for knowing when an appointment has a Lab Case necessary to make the appointment possible. This feature was enabled many versions back, and with appropriate set-up it can greatly assist the office by providing the necessary notification of upcoming appointments with no lab case present in the building. The Lighthouse Lab Case Tracking System can be used in conjuction with this built in funtion or used instead of the out of the box feature. It will create all written correspondence to the Lab (generate the actual Lab Slip) while permanently noting in the chart all issues concerning the case. LH Lab Case Tracking can be used for Fixed and Removeable restorations. This article will describe each component and how to use the overall system in your practice.

    PW Plus Pack Updated Rxs
    Version: 05-04-2005
    All the Rx's in the PW Plus Pack that ships w/ PW, updated as follows: -Added "Phoned in" question -Added "Pharmacy name and number" question -Reorganized them so they're simple to install. -Made AutoLink that prints the document not print if the "Phoned in" checkbox is checked NOTE: These AutoLinks to DO NOT overwrite the existing AutoLinks, so if you're re-installing any of these Rx's, you'll end up with TWO AutoLinks. To delete the one you don't want: 1. Edit the Rx Form (Experts _ Automation Expert _ Responses _ Forms). 2. Click the [AutoLinks] button. 3. If there are two, remove the first one. If there is only one, do nothing. 4. Do this for each Rx that you install from this Exchange Pack. If you don't, the Rx document will print even if you check the "Phoned in" checkbox. 05-04-2005 UPDATE: Added ability to indicate if a generic is OK, or "Dispense as written" to all Rx's for brand-name drugs. NOTE: If you have already installed any Rx from this Pack, installing the updated version will overwrite any changes you have made to the Form (such as other dosages or sig choices) and the Document (such as the practice name in the header), so update with caution!

    LH E-Mail Prompter
    Version: 1.0
    This is a quick little package for offices that are realizing the benefits to recall, scheduling, confirming, and treatment plan follow-up that comes from having a correct e-mail on every active patient. If the email field is blank while either dropping an appointment, checking in an appointment or checking out an appointment - the staff is reminded to try to collect an email or fill in a place holder value for the patients that decline or do not have one. Each auto-link can be turned off if desired.

    School Excuse Document
    Version: 5/17/04
    A document titled "School excuse" which will print upon request during the "check in" of a child that: -is between the ages of 5 and 18. -if the appointment isn't a Saturday -if the appointment is between 8 and 3 Click here to see the post that generated the creation of this document.

    ClaimX AutoLinks
    Version: 6-9-2004
    AutoLinks that launch the ClaimX e-claims program: -Send a claim at the end of check out. -Send a claim at the end of a resumed check out. -Request benefit info on Clipboard [Actions]. -Request benefit info on Person Pick List [Actions].

    Bleaching promo e-mail list
    Version: 12-16-2004
    A Contact Expert of all active patients who have an e-mail address, who are over 17 years old, and who haven't had any of these bleaching codes: 3960, 3975 or 3979. Created for Steven Bloom.

    Lighthouse Next Appt Info System
    Version: 9-7-2005
    Four Forms and several AutoLinks to help your intra-office communications about each patient's next appointment - what needs to be scheduled when, and for how long (in the case of Hygiene, Ortho and Denture patients), and special instructions (in the case of ANY type of appointment). See this article for a complete description of the systems and instructions for installation and usage.

    Menaker (2 custom Analysis Experts)
    Version: 04-04-2005
    Two Analysis Experts requested by Club Member Scott Menaker: 12 Months Prod'n by ADA Code Range and Menaker Monthly Monitors

    Patient search by e-mail address
    Version: 08-05-2005
    A Contact Expert of all patients, sorted by e-mail address. (Excludes patients with no e-mail address and with # as the first character of their e-mail address field.)

    Prompts to include or exclude inactive patients.

    Very useful when you get an e-mail from a patient and you can't easily identify who the patient is.

    LH Simple Chart Audit
    Version: 09-05-2005
    A Contact Expert of all patients who don't have an appointment, are more than 15 months past due for recall, and haven't been seen for any reason in over 18 months. A letter whose purpose is to reactivate these patients if possible. See the article Lighthouse Simple Chart Audit System for details.

    Chart Retirement
    Version: 10-05-2005
    A Contact Expert (LH01 Chart Pull) that tells you which of your patients on a specified day have a chart to pull. Excludes all patients who were new to your practice after the day you stopped making charts for new patients. (You must modify the Expert so it knows this date for your office!) Excludes anyone with "RET" or "BOX" as the first 3 characters of their Chart Number field. See the Article Chart Retirement Protocol and Checklist for a detailed description of the chart retirement process.

    Chart Retirement Checklist
    Version: 10-08-2005
    A MS WordPad version of the Chart Retirement Checklist that you can edit to your own requirements. Click here to see the Chart Retirement Protocol and Checklist Article.



    • Interesting posts

    The following list represents topics on the Club site that either have had a lot of posts made, or have been read by a large number of Club members.

    PracticeWorks

    General discussion (PracticeWorks)

    Expert Creation Requests

    Automation and PracticeScript

    The Business side of things (not PracticeWorks related)

    General discussion (Office Admin)

    Hot Deals!

    Computers and Technology

    The Clinical side of things (not PracticeWorks related)

    General discussion (Clinical)

    Clinical technologies

    Going chartless

    Club Lighthouse

    General discussion (Lighthouse)

    The Suggestion Box

    The Kudzu Project

    General Discussion (Kudzu)



    Seminar schedule


    Paperless Charting

    At Club Lighthouse, we are all about maximizing the efficiency of your computer system. There is no better way to do that than to rid your office of the most significant time drag most of you still have: your paper charts.

    Learn to rid your office of paper charts once and for all. Click here for more information, as well as dates and locations.

    On-line seminar registration now available


    Turbo charging your practice with PracticeWorks

    Back by popular demand, this two day seminar is sure to improve your understanding of PracticeWorks, as well as give you a better understanding of what we are trying to accomplish here on Club Lighthouse. Don't forget: Club members get a 10% discount off of the registration fee!

    To see dates and locations, or to register on-line, click here.


    We hope you found this newsletter informative and helpful. Remember, its our job to make your job easier! If you have ANY question, be sure to either post a question on the Club, or if you are uncomfortable posting your question in public, please feel free to contact one of us directly using email.

    Thanks again, and see you on the Club!

    Allen Jorgensen: allen@lighthouse-pmg.com
    Brian Smith: brian@lighthouse-pmg.com
    Joel Kozikowski: joel@lighthouse-pmg.com

    © 2003, 2004, 2005 Lighthouse Practice Management Group
    "PracticeWorks" is a registered trademark of PracticeWorks, Inc.
    Lighthouse Practice Management Group and its principals are not affiliated with PracticeWorks, Inc. in any way