BLOGS & EDUCATION

It’s a road, not a destination  Advancing technology has brought more health care into the digital world. Today there are tons of behavioral health applications and services to choose from. Although these tools have been available for years, the COVID-19 pandemic propelled their adoption forward as most behavioral health care moved online. An ongoing shortage of behavioral health providers and increasing costs have also prompted consumers to turn to digital apps to help manage mental health symptoms. There are hundreds of behavioral health apps with different features aimed at a variety of needs. Some apps, like TalkSpace and BetterHelp, connect users directly to a licensed therapist for individual counseling. Other apps, such as Calm and Sanvello, offer meditation and breathing [...]

If your practice uses an electronic health record (EHR) system, then it’s important to understand how the 21st Century Cures Act affects you. The Cures Act, signed into law in December 2016, is the foundation put in place by the HITECH Act via the 3 stages of Meaningful Use. The Cures Act in many ways should be thought of as the next version or next “stage” of Meaningful Use. 21st Century Cures Act: Getting the Basics The Cures Act covers many areas of research, including drugs, medical devices, and software. For example, some funding is intended for the creation of new research competitions and loan repayment programs for certain researchers. It also speeds up the FDA drug approval process for [...]

You’ve probably noticed the incredible investment in the healthcare technology space over the last couple of years. Value-based care (VBC), or value-based reimbursement, is a common buzzword in healthcare. But not everyone is clear on what it means exactly. As the U.S. healthcare industry evolves toward VBC, many health providers and new technology solutions may feel like they’re falling behind. This introduction to VBC will give you the basics and help you catch up. First, let’s define what VBC is replacing: fee-for-service (FFS) care. What is fee-for-service (FFS) care? VBC is intended to replace the FFS model, which has been predominant in healthcare for many years. Under this model, payers are billed for individual services. For example, a person who [...]

“Wow, what? This cannot be correct!?” This is what I was thinking while I was writing up my bio for my new business endeavor and realized I’ve been working for thirty years. Interestingly enough, I’ve worked in the rehabilitation services and the behavioral health “space” for all of it. I worked in traumatic brain injury rehabilitation service through college and until I was thirty, and have spent the last twenty years working in healthcare technology. I’m absolutely in no way a person who writes code, but am a conduit between clinical staff and programmers. Some of us remember a time when you would be asked, “So what do you do? Software for mental health? What is that?” Prior to the [...]

One of the biggest barriers that prevent many people from going to the doctor for adequate medical care is transportation -- actually getting to your medical appointment can be a huge challenge. Whether it’s a lack of transportation, a significant distance to drive, a behavioral health issue or other disability that prevents them from traveling, transportation is a barrier that needs to be considered when discussing medical care that works for everyone. The introduction of telehealth, or virtual health, will be a game-changer for vulnerable populations receiving care, as well as for coordinating treatment with other providers. Telehealth is the distribution of health-related services and information via electronic and telecommunication technologies. Most common is the act of talking to [...]