EDGE, Nextech’s first Annual User Conference, is less than two weeks away. We’ve planned three days and nights chock full of networking events, information-packed sessions and collaboration opportunities. Our expo hall will be filled with exhibitors aiming to improve your practice functions, and our product experts at our Innovation Station can help you fine-tune your workflow and answer your specific questions in detail. We will be rolling out several innovative features during the conference that we can’t wait to share with you. But let’s face it – a part of you is probably headed to EDGE to escape the cold, eat, drink and experience the Sunshine State during this ideal time of year.

Part 1: The Sony Pictures Hack The recent hack of Anthem, the second largest health insurance provider in the U.S., has once again made the topic of cybersecurity painfully relevant to those who work in the healthcare industry. Initial estimates revealed that as many as 80 million Anthem customers had large portions of their records comprised (possibly more). While Anthem insists that no medical or credit card data was stolen, these records still contained a wealth of personal information (all worth a fortune on any of the darknet black market data exchanges)—customer names, dates of birth, social security numbers, addresses, places of employment, and even income data was stolen in the cyberattack. Not only were customer records compromised, but those of Anthem employees as well. Even their CEO, Joseph Swedish, had his personal information stolen during the breach. Anthem has not yet officially disclosed exactly how the hack occurred, except to say that it was a “very sophisticated cyberattack.”

In today's world, doing something faster doesn't always yield great results. For instance, you can order fast food in no time, but you may end up getting an average sandwich with very little nutritional value. But the complete opposite is true when it comes to electronic medical records. Nextech EMR software can help your practice get things done faster, while providing even more accurate patient care. Here are a few ways that EMR can improve your practice:

The International Classification of Diseases 10th edition consists of two distinct codes sets: ICD-10- Clinical Modification (CM) for diagnosis codes and ICD-10-Procedure Coding System (PCS) for procedure codes. In this article, we will focus specifically on ICD-10-PCS and how its procedure codes will impact specialty-specific practices.

For a number of years, many in the healthcare industry have been frightened off by the highly overstated cost estimates for the implementation of ICD-10. Some estimates predicted the costs of this change at as high as approximately $85,000… for even a small practice with as few as three doctors. These sorts of very expensive-seeming cost estimates for ICD-10 implementation have played a big hand in the reason why so many healthcare professionals continue to resist it.

The last two decades have seen an unprecedented rise in technology both at home and in the workplace. This transition has affected all aspects of our lives, both public and private, and physicians practices are no exception to this statement. While advances in technology have largely been positive for the world of medicine, it's impossible to ignore the fact that a host of new security concerns have come along with this rise in user-friendly systems. When determining which EMR software best suits the needs of your practice, it's important to consider the specific situations and security concerns that your clinic or office will undergo on a daily basis. With that in mind, take a look at some of the most common security concerns affecting doctors' offices today:

Regardless of your practice's specialty, it's critical that you realize the advantages that can come from good patient engagement techniques. While much of this can be accomplished through building strong, trusting relationships with your clientele, the increased use of digital tools also offers valuable opportunities for advancement in this regard. If you're thinking about how you can take your patient engagement to the next level, you will want to evaluate your electronic medical record software. Take a look at these tips for maximizing patient engagement with EMR software: