Test Your Knowledge Answer #469

In the current financial climate, practices must maximize the number of patients cared for by each physician as well as the content of each visit. To manage a large patient population and generate higher relative-value units visits, a practice must effectively improve quality and service. Among other innovative reforms, group visits provide an effective means to serve large numbers of patients, improve practice efficiency, and improve patient education and satisfaction. Group visits are effective means of providing patient information and education; encouraging information exchange and support among patients with shared chronic conditions; and improving screening and prevention, the efficiency of prescription refills, and self-management skills. In contrast with a 15-minute office visit, a 2-hour group visit with 20 patients permits ample time for education and discussion. Moreover, group visits are billable services if adequately documented and coded. Usually, a physician and nurse participate, with other team members also present as appropriate. In addition, if the health-care team provides some targeted advice and individualized medications or other medical management to participating patients and documents this care, the group visit can be coded and reimbursed as an established patient office visit at the appropriate complexity level.

 

In view of the multiple competing priorities that must be addressed in individual office visits, trying to cram more content into an existing visit may not be a realistic strategy. Similarly, increasing the amount of time physicians spend with individual patients or the frequency of patient visits is often not practical in practices with a high patient volume. Further, given the fiscal constraints faced by many general medicine practices, hiring an additional medical assistant or nurse to increase patient education often is not feasible.

 

Copyright © 2009 Diabetes In Control, Inc.