You know the revenue cycle:
→ Charge capture that will include the gathering of procedure and diagnosis codes
→ Claim processing to ensure the claim is formatted with the correct charges and patient demographics
→ Collection of funds from both patients and payers
The first stop of the process, the charge capture, must be performed well in order to have a good result. Improving your charge capture process will help to improve performance and mitigate future revenue loss. Common charge capture process breakdowns can result from:
- Incomplete or missing documentation
- Unknown or inconsistent organizational charging policies
- Documentation that doesn’t meet payer guidelines
- Staff that don’t record the appropriate charge for the service being provided
Here’s how to charge capture like the pros.
Define your charge capture process.
In order to improve your charge capture process you must first define it. It’s the most important step you can take. When you take the time to define your current charge capture process, you will be able to quickly identify any points of weakness, breakdowns in communication and immediate opportunities for improvement.
How to measure your current charge capture process.
To effectively measure your charge capture process, decide what the process is trying to accomplish. Here are some common examples of measures:
- Number of encounters=billable patient visits
- Physician time=time spent on charge capture activities
- Coding errors=number down
- Cost of coding errors=the dollar amount associated with coding errors
- Number of bills submitted=bills submitted by physician
- Cost of lost bills=the dollar amount associated to lost bills
Charge Capture Done Right: Discover how HybridChart can increase revenue for your practice.
How to analyze your current charge capture process.
Don’t simply think you know the problem right off the bat. You need to know where the data is leading you. Any issues that jump out at you, take necessary action on them.
Now implement our charge capture process.
After you analyze, it’s time to implement any changes to the charge capture process. It could be a few simple tweaks or a complete overhaul of the entire process.
Now go forth and conquer your charge capture process!
Is your process causing you to miss charges or spend money on additional steps? Wondering if your mobile charge capture is saving trees…or physicians?
We created this comparison to outline the time, steps and room for error in the old fashioned paper system, compared to the streamlined mobile charge capture system.
Paper vs HybridChart – Download the full PDF here
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- More About Dr. Sanders
Dr. Gregory Sanders is a Harvard-trained, practicing cardiologist and founder and CEO of HybridChart. He has been coding since the 1980s and has spent his medical career focusing on improving processes. His patient care skills earned him recognition as one of Phoenix Magazine’s TOP DOCs. He lives in Scottsdale with his family.