
- We don't have time to have team meetings!
- How can we meet when the phone won't stop ringing?
- Why should we meet as a team when we work together all day long?
- It is so hard to recruit and retain staff!
May 1, 2024 3:00:00 PM / by Practice Support Team posted in Primary Care, Quality Improvement, Pediatrics, practice management, internal medicine

Mar 26, 2024 4:00:00 PM / by Leslie D McDowell, DNP, ANP-BC, RN posted in Primary Care, medicare, advance care planning, conversation
National Healthcare Decisions Day exists to inspire, educate and empower the public and providers about the importance of advance care planning. It is an initiative to encourage patients to express their wishes regarding healthcare and for providers and facilities to respect those wishes, whatever they may be. (Source: https://theconversationproject.org/nhdd/)
Feb 20, 2024 8:30:00 AM / by Practice Support Team posted in Medicaid Managed Care, Primary Care, practice management, Tailored Plans

North Carolina Medicaid Division of Health Benefits (DHB) has announced that Tailored Plans (the health plans for qualifying members with mental health needs, substance use disorders, intellectual/developmental disabilities or traumatic brain injuries) will start on July 1, 2024.
Feb 12, 2024 10:47:22 AM / by Practice Support Team posted in Primary Care, Vaccines, medicare

The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) retroactively added two new CPT codes for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine administration to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule files effective for dates of service on and after October 6, 2023.
Feb 7, 2024 1:28:00 PM / by Leslie D McDowell, DNP, ANP-BC, RN posted in Primary Care, Pregnancy, OB/GYN, family medicine, STIs, prenatal

With only a single case in our state about a decade ago, congenital syphilis has been on the rise ever since.
In 2023, (according to preliminary data), North Carolina lost nine people from this completely preventable cause; with another 63 babies suffering from congenital syphilis infection.
According to Victoria Mobley, HIV/STI medical director for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services' Division of Public Health, more than half of the mothers of the babies born with syphilis had no documented prenatal care at the time they delivered. Equally of concern, of the women who did have prenatal care, only 41% received appropriate screening tests, despite state law requirements for syphilis testing for anyone who is pregnant (at first pre-natal visit, again between 28-30 weeks gestation and at time of delivery).
Sadly, this is a national epidemic, and more action must be taken to begin to address it.
Feb 7, 2024 8:30:00 AM / by Practice Support Team posted in Primary Care, behavioral health, collaborative care


Collaborative Care Model (CoCM) Provider Learning Collaborative
Role of the Psychiatric Consultant/Systematic Caseload Review
February 15, 2024 | 12:30-1:30 p.m.
Join us on Thursday, February 15 for the second Collaborative Care Model (CoCM) Provider Learning Collaborative which will focus on the following topic: Role of the Psychiatric Consultant/Systematic Caseload Review.
Jan 31, 2024 8:00:00 AM / by Leslie D McDowell, DNP, ANP-BC, RN posted in Primary Care, exercise, practice management

You've been sitting there longer than you meant to, right?
You have
No doubt you are feeling the tension building in your neck, shoulders, and arms....
Try these 3 Easy Desk Stretches!
Jan 29, 2024 9:13:00 AM / by Practice Support Team posted in Primary Care, prescriptions, opioids
In North Carolina, a new state law has added the anticonvulsant and nerve pain medication gabapentin to the list of drugs that are tracked through the state's prescription drug management system, the NC Controlled Substances Reporting System.
Jan 15, 2024 9:59:00 AM / by Practice Support Team posted in Billing, Primary Care, medicare, practice management

Did you know?
The typical primary care physician caring for Medicare patients must coordinate care with 229 other physicians working in 117 practices?
The 2024 Final Rule from CMS (Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services) established a new code to ensure Primary Care Providers receive additional payment for the high-value visits they provide.
Jan 12, 2024 8:30:00 AM / by Practice Support Team posted in Primary Care, training, students, rural health, workforce, Pediatrics, internal medicine

The North Carolina Area Health Education Centers Program (NC AHEC) is seeking proposals to establish up to 5 rural interprofessional clinical training sites.
Health care practices in North Carolina face many challenges. Our team of quality improvement coaches (QICs) have skills and expertise to support you in your transformation efforts.
To learn more about Practice Support Click Here
Apply for practice support services - submit an email inquiry
The Northwest Area Health Education Center of Wake Forest University School of Medicine provides and supports educational activities and services with a focus on primary care in rural communities and those with less access to resources to recruit, train and retain the workforce needed to create a healthy North Carolina.