Concepts of Administrative Functions

The purpose of this competency project is to assist you to gain an understanding of the administrative and management skills necessary to efficiently run a medical office, including concepts of effective communication, daily operations, managing medical records and financial operations. It presents you with an opportunity to not only showcase your knowledge of these concepts, but to articulate, analyze and apply them to certain simulated scenarios.
This project will be completed in (4) parts and will correlate to content presented in class. There will be a grading rubric attached to each section. The average of these parts will count as 30% of your final grade for this course. As this assignment is a reflection of your knowledge in cognitive competencies, you must receive at least a “C” (70%) to pass each section of this project.
Part 2: Concepts of Administrative Functions (Scheduling)
MAERB Competencies: VI.C.1, VI.C.2a, VI.C.2b, IV.C.3, X.C.11a-d
Due: Week 7
Patient scheduling is an integral part of the daily workload for medical assistants, whether in large family practices, urgent care centers, or sole proprietor clinics. Although patient appointment scheduling may seem like a routine function, a smooth patient flow often determines the success of a day in the ambulatory care setting. A variety of administrative skills are used in the performance of this vital function. By effectively scheduling patients to fit a particular practice, it is possible to make profitable use of provider and staff time. As a medical assistant you need to know all aspects of how to schedule patients.
1. Based on the information you learned from classroom discussions, assigned readings, and research, describe the following:
a. Describe the advantages and disadvantages of electronic versus manual scheduling (VI.C.2a, VI.C.2b).
b. Describe the different appointment scheduling methods and provide an example of each (VI.C.1)
c. What critical/important information is needed to schedule patients for procedures (IV.C.3)
d. Describe the best scheduling system for the following types of medical offices :
• A large medical practice with four physicians and with x-ray and lab facilities that is available anytime. Explain your answer.
• A small practice with two physicians and with lab facilities that is available only between 8:00AM and 10:00PM. Explain your answer.
2. Based on the discussion you provided above and the information you learned from classroom discussions, assigned readings, and research, complete the following scheduling exercise. You are responsible for completing and verifying all surgical schedules in your office. As you Review these three scenarios. You note that there are errors in three of the patient’s electronic health record. The errors include:
– Brown, James has patient information in the chart that belongs to another patient.
– Smith, London surgery that is on the reservation form is not the same as the surgery that is documented in the patient note.
– Royal, Diamond there is an error on the medication dosage for the patient’s antibiotics.
a. Identify how you will correct all errors found in each patient’s schedule.
b. Describe the process of compliance reporting as it relates to unsafe activities, errors in patient care, conflicts of interest, and incident reports (X.C.11 a-d)
c. What quality assurance practices might you put in place that would prevent these errors from occurring again in your medical office (I C. 12)?