Topic: Technician Exchange / Volunteering in Peru

It’s very rewarding to go out of the country to help with a surgical team. I’ve been to Chiapas (southern Mexico) with one of our surgeons. Like Sandra, I found I was the only trained surgical(CST)/ophthalmic(COT) tech and had to quickly help some rn’s/lpn’s get up to speed on assisting with ECCEs (no phacos). We did manage to do about 175 surgeries (between 5 teams) that weekend. I made a powerpoint of that trip and have shown it at a few of our local Lion’s Clubs.

Topic: Technician Exchange / Interested in Temporary work

We are always looking for trained techs…where to you live? Our clinic is in Roanoke, VA. my e-mail is mgeres@eyecaresurgery.com
Michael

Topic: Registered Nurse Exchange / Continuing Education specific to Ophthalmology Nurses

This website
https://www.nurse.com/ce/Ophthalmology
lists some continuing education opportunities specific for nurses who want to learn/advance in the ophthamology field.

Topic: Optometry Exchange / Creating Low Vision area to my clinic

I’m interested in adding a low vision section to my clinic. However I’m very clueless about start up costs, likelihood of profit, hiring needs, etc. Any tips?

Topic: Technician Exchange / Volunteering in Peru

I am interested in volunteering. Is there a directory for technicians and ROUBs? Any tips on where to begin looking?

Topic: Technician Exchange / Continuing Education Opportunities

Here are some upcoming CME opportunities for allied health professionals…
NEVADA CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAM
13.0 Group A and 1.0 Group B JCAHPO CE credits
Friday & Saturday, September 12-13, 2008
The Westin Casuarina Las Vegas Hotel, Casino & Spa
160 East Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, Nevada 89109
-AMD TechTraxSM
-Special Guest Speaker – Tom Sullivan!
· WASHINGTON, DC CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAM
7.0 Group A JCAHPO CE credits
Saturday, September 13, 2008
The Liaison Capitol Hill, an Affinia Hotel
415 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20001
-AMD TechTraxSM
· MICHIGAN OPHTHALMIC SURGICAL ASSISTING PROGRAM
7.0 Group A JCAHPO CE credits
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Henry Ford Hospital 2799, W. Grand, Detroit, MI 48202
-Lectures and “Hands-on Workshop”
-Register early! Limited space is available!
· NORTH & SOUTH CAROLINA CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAM
14.0 Group A JCAHPO CE credits
Friday & Saturday, September 26-27, 2008
Hilton Oceanfront Resort, 23 Ocean Lane, Hilton Head Island, SC 29928
· HAWAII RETINA CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAM
17.0 Group A and 1.0 Group B JCAHPO CE credits
Saturday, Sunday & Monday October 11-13, 2008
Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa, 3700 Wailea Alanui, Wailea-Maui, HI 96753
-AMD TechTraxSM
· MASSACHUSETTS CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAM
8.0 Group A JCAHPO CE credits
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Boston, MA
-AMD TechTraxSM
· 2008 JCAHPO/ATPO ANNUAL CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAM – ATLANTA, GA
Up to 30.0 JCAHPO CE credits available
November 7-11, 2008
Hilton Atlanta Hotel, 225 Courtland Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30303
-Lectures and “Hands-on Workshops”

Topic: Ophthalmology Exchange / Interesting Journal articles

Here’s another recent publication regarding glaucoma…
Study links exfoliation syndrome with decreased uveoscleral outflow
In eyes with either normal ocular tension or ocular hypertension, exfoliation syndrome appears to be associated with a decrease in aqueous outflow through the uveoscleral pathway, according to a prospective study by researchers in Nebraska. However, exfoliation syndrome only appears to reduce outflow facility in eyes with ocular hypertension.
Shan Fan, MD, and colleagues at University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha evaluated the affect of exfoliation syndrome on aqueous humor dynamics among 80 patients with or without exfoliation syndrome who either had elevated IOP or normal ocular tension.
The patients were divided into two experimental groups and two control groups based on IOP and exfoliation syndrome status. The two experimental groups included patients with a history of exfoliation syndrome and either ocular hypertension (15 patients) or normal ocular tension (25 patients); the two, age-matched control groups included healthy volunteers with normal ocular tension (25 patients) and patients with ocular hypertension (15 patients) who had no other ocular pathologies.
After glaucoma medication washout, the investigators evaluated IOP, episcleral venous pressure, aqueous flow, outflow facility and uveoscleral outflow.
The investigators found that, compared with controls, uveoscleral outflow was significantly decreased in patients with exfoliation syndrome, independent of IOP.
Regardless of exfoliation syndrome status, patients with ocular hypertension demonstrated decreased outflow facility compared with patients with normal ocular tension, the authors noted.
The mean aqueous flow rates were statistically similar in all groups and were not correlated with IOP or influenced by the presence of exfoliation syndrome, according to the study, published in the July issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.
“These findings of reduced uveoscleral outflow may explain the higher IOPs that are difficult to control, which in turn contribute to an enhanced risk of glaucomatous optic neuropathy,” the study authors said.

Topic: Ophthalmology Exchange / Interesting Journal articles

As an ophthalmologist I find it difficult to keep up with my Journal readings so I thought it would be helpful for ophthalmologists to list interesting articles to help us all out. So if anyone comes across anything please share.

Topic: General Staff Exchange / General Staff finding LES

LES makes the news!!
Responding to Aging Baby Boomers, NC’s Local Eye Site networks across the U.S.
08-05-2008
RALEIGH, N.C. —Local Eye Site (LES), (localeyesite.com), launched in North Carolina this year as an online networking community for all eye care professionals. The website announced its expansion outside of NC beginning in August of 2008. LES provides online resources for eye care providers and an internet presence for eye care practices and Ophthalmology and Optometry teaching institutions. The website specializes in recruiting with a unique, targeted approach focused on eye care.
Brad McCorkle, of Raleigh, NC, founded LES with the mission of improving the quality of eye care through enhancing communication, increasing educational opportunities, and fostering professional development. LES builds its client base by providing practice memberships that offer innovative recruiting tools designed specifically for eye care providers. Local Eye Site services the entire recruiting needs of the eye care practices using a unique combination of job opportunity announcements, pro-active emailing using the LES database, practice advertising, and specialized involvement of the LES networking specialists.
LES President, Brad McCorkle, expressed, “Based on our team’s background in eye care, and our awareness of the US’ aging population and limited talent pool to serve the aging boomers, we know an increased need for eye care providers translates into an additional need for Local Eye Site. However, we expected that it could take a full year to get LES noticed. The response surprised us due to the high volume of traffic and the number of eye care professionals registering to the website this quickly. We definitely struck a chord.” Lee Ann Harrison, Regional Sales Manager adds: “I believe in Brad’s vision of a community and his business integrity. We share in our excitement for this new concept of efficient and cost-effective practice administration at the very basic level: recruiting qualified candidates in a highly specialized industry.”
By following the mission of serving the eye care community, LES helps practices, like Charlotte Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat (CEENTA), recruit and share their educational offerings. Tara McAlister, the Staff Development Manager at CEENTA, responds: “[...]By partnering with Local Eye Site (LES), CEENTA hopes to continue to provide opportunities for regional eye care professionals to receive continuing education opportunities[…]Since joining together with Brad McCorkle and the staff of Local Eye Site, we have been so impressed with their dedication to providing a professional and informative site to meet the needs of eye staff in the area. Within just hours of posting a new opening we were thrilled to locate a possible candidate.”
Brad shares, “Our database of jobseekers and eye care professionals is national already. We value every state as contributors to this powerful community, and as members benefiting from our networking efforts. Our vision is that someday Local Eye Site will be recognized as the home page of eye care.”
For further information, contact Brad McCorkle at (919) 301-8539. Website: https://localeyesite.com/.

Topic: Ophthalmology Exchange / COT looking for work in Atlanta, Georgia area

Hoping to find some work in Atlanta or surrounding area. Am interested in both PT and FT work. Thanks.

Topic: Ophthalmology Exchange / PROJECT 3000 >> Leber's Congenital Amaurosis (LCA) Paitents needed

PROJECT 3000
Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis (LCA)
Ophthalmologists Needed to Identify Patients
The Ophthalmologist’s Role
The major goal of Project 3000 is to get in contact with all 3,000 individuals affected with Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis (LCA) in the United States and offer them state-of-the-art genetic testing to identify the specific genetic cause of their disease. Help is needed from ophthalmologists throughout the country to identify these individuals. The Project 3000 team believes that the patients’ physician must remain at the center of their medical care. Thus, all individuals interested in participating in the project will be encouraged to do so through their existing physician.
How to Refer a Patient
Please refer any past, current, and future LCA patients to the Project 3000team at (866) 495-2873. You may also contact Heather Scherber of the 1st Touch Foundation at hscherber@1sttouch.org or (916) 212-0312.
The Project 3000 Story
Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis (LCA) is a rare blinding eye disease that affects one in 100,000 children. Project 3000 was launched whtn Chicago Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee and Boston Celtics CEO and co-owner Wyc Grousbeck, each of whom has a child with LCA, sought a partnership with The University of Iowa to advance scientific understanding of the disease and work toward a cure. The University of Iowa is an international leader in vision research and care, with particular stregth in inherited eye diseases.

Topic: Insurance & Coding Exchange / Great Article on Coding from the Physicians Practice Journal

Coding: Your Top Coding Concerns Solved – Using Time To Code For Office Visits; Who, What, When, Where, And Why?
Here’s the link https://www.physicianspractice.com/index/fuseact…

Topic: Administrative Exchange / The Top 3 Most Expensive Mistakes Doctors MakeWith Medical Billing

According to APEX Medical Billing Solutions (https://www.apexmedicalbilling.com/), one of the nation’s most respected medical billing service firms, here are the top 3 most expensive mistakes doctors make with medical billing:
1. Inefficiently and lost productivity: When doctors spend time on medical billing paperwork, they are not seeing patients. It is far more profitable for a doctor to spend time treating patients than performing medical billing. Doctors can easily increase the profits of their medical practice by tens of thousands of dollars per year by seeing more patients and outsourcing their medical billing claims processing.
2. Billing errors. Insurance companies are very strict on how medical billing needs to be coded. Even the smallest mistake will cause an insurance company to reject a medical billing claim, forcing the doctor to fix the error(s), resubmit the claim, and then hope the new claim will be accepted and processed. Medical billing errors can cause a doctor to have to wait several months or more before being paid. To add to this problem, medical billing rules and regulations are constantly changing, requiring a doctor to spend time and money on continuing education to stay current. This kills cash flow for a medical practice.
“Our extensive medical billing knowledge and compliance with the latest regulatory changes reduces a physician’s need to invest time and money in continuing education and familiarizing their staff with ever-changing standards for insurance coverage,” says Anthony Gawronski, managing partner of APEX. “Our job is to increase a doctor’s cash flow and profits by focusing on follow-up and retrieval of payments. We also evaluate the reimbursement by procedure code and suggest increases when necessary.”
3. Lack of follow-up with insurance companies. An area where most medical practices really hurt themselves financially is a lack of follow-up to see if claims have been accepted by the insurance company and when payment will be issued. By not consistently following up to see if claims are being processed by insurance companies, medical practices lose tens of thousands of dollars a year.

Topic: Optometry Exchange / Continuing Education Opportunities

Also important to note for users in SC, the 51st South Carolina Optometric Association meeting at Hilton Head Island,
Sponsor: South Carolina Optometric Association
Location: Marriott Resort and Spa, Hilton Head Island, SC
Date(s): December 4, 2008 – December 7, 2008
Event URL: www.sc-eyecare.org
Contact Phone:

Topic: General Staff Exchange / Continuing Education credits

Check out the “My Careers” section to see CME courses being offered by the following groups,
Charlotte Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat Continuing Education program: CEENTA’s program offers JCAHPO Continuing Education credits. In addition, the program offers CE credits for Optometrists, as well as, Continuing Medical Education credits for physicians.
NC Ophthalmic Personnel Society: NCOPS Mission Statement: To provide ophthalmic personnel with a professional network that fosters progressive education, personal development, and open communication.
Dialogue Consulting: Engagement with Dialogue Consulting, an organizational learning and performance company based in NC, fosters increased effectiveness in the business of eye care through the development of their human resources. Dialogue Consulting has worked with many leading pharmaceutical, biotech and healthcare companies including Amgen, GSK, Merck, Neil Medical and Pfizer. They have also been engaged in serving physician practices through developmental training on customer service, staffing, interviewing skills, interpersonal communication, team building and leadership. Please click on your position to the right to access Dialogue Consulting’s initial LES offering of articles.