Security breaches are likely to be at the forefront of your concerns when it comes to managing your practice. Still, you may not be doing everything in your power to avoid them. Take a look at these helpful tips for managing your practice's security.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services developed the Physician Quality Reporting System to encourage providers to report quality of care data to Medicare. The ultimate intention is to develop a national health information infrastructure that will give the regulatory body data necessary to improve care quality across a wide variety of measures, such as patient engagement and treatment outcomes.

The healthcare industry is in a state of transformation. Providers have a lot to think about in terms of government mandates, from HIPAA compliance to meaningful use requirements to the ICD-10 transition to continuously updating Physician Quality Reporting System measures. Meeting the basic requirements to comply with healthcare IT mandates may be good enough for some, but the truly successful practices will strive to go above and beyond. Consider some of these suggestions for not only complying, but thriving, in the face of evolving healthcare mandates:

Whether you've just started your own medical practice or have been a leader in your respective field for years, it's important to recognize that revenue cycle management is one of your foremost concerns. Keeping a close eye on your incoming revenue streams and outgoing budget will allow you to understand where your practice's money is moving, but viewing this data more analytically can do even more for you. Ideally, you should regularly be taking time to observe your practice from a high-level viewpoint with the intention of identifying new sources of profit. The process of identifying new revenue streams can be made a great deal easier with these helpful tips:

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act was developed in 1996 not only to make it simpler for people to maintain health insurance, but also to enhance the confidentiality and security of health care information. While it has been around for nearly two decades, full implementation of HIPAA is still very much under way, and providers have continued to make changes, from implementing new defenses to upgrading practice management software, in order to comply.

More than ever, it's incredibly important for medical professionals to do everything they can to maintain patient satisfaction. Studies show that physicians who engage in direct eye contact with patients are perceived as more empathetic and well-liked. This can be facilitated with mobile tools. Nextech's EHR solution works on both a PC and an iPad, allowing you to choose the best device for patient interaction. With the iPad app, you can keep direct eye contact in the exam room and even stay connected to your patients and your practice wherever you go.

Many of you have probably heard the rumors that CMS has released a proposed Meaningful Use flexibility rule, which could change the rules for the 2015 Meaningful Use reporting period. A proposal was released in April and rule-makers have 60 days to discuss the changes before anything is finalized. Experts in the field agree that a final decision should be released in the July/August timeframe.

With the EHR Incentive program and other initiatives to make health care more engaging, the patient portal is more important than ever. However, as revealed at the 2015 Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society conference, portal technology has largely fallen short when it comes to fostering engagement.