Advanced Ortho Systems - Providing Orthodontic Practice Management Software

Could a Natural Disaster Ruin Your Practice?

A Commentary by Charles A. Lewis

Although my articles frequently stress the need to safeguard patient data against potential catastrophic events, in my mind orthodontists never seem to take the subject seriously enough. However, now that it has only been two weeks since Hurricane Katrina devastated Gulf Coast areas in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana (practically destroying the city of New Orleans); this topic should be fresh in doctor’s minds. In terms of magnitude, this disaster is reportedly the greatest natural catastrophe that has happened in the United States and our hearts go out to all those who have been affected!

The natural disasters that can occur in our country come in many forms including wind (hurricanes, tornadoes, typhoons); water (floods, tsunamis, storm surges); earth shifts (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, avalanches), and fire (wildfires). These powerful forces of nature, or in many cases, combinations of them, occur all over our planet; no area of the world is exempt! Given this truth, doesn’t it seem logical that orthodontists should take sensible precautions to protect the patient information and records that are required for them to practice their profession?

Yet it might come as a surprise that there are some striking parallels between the pre-hurricane situation in New Orleans and the conditions that exist in most orthodontic offices. By pointing them out, I’m hoping that it will cause orthodontists to seriously evaluate, before it is too late, whether they are adequately protecting their patient records and office data.

For many years it was common knowledge – not just to the involved government entities but to people throughout the United States – that unless special precautions were taken, New Orleans would be at extreme risk of destruction by flooding in the event of a category 4 or 5 hurricane. Orthodontists also know that their electronic data and paper patient records are at risk as a result of such disasters.

All the involved government entities knew they needed to protect New Orleans, and what methods were required to do that. They also knew the costs of providing appropriate safeguards. Orthodontists too, know that protecting their records is required, although many do not know the best means, or costs, of accomplishing that task.

The limited safeguards put into effect were insufficient to protect New Orleans from the risks that had been projected. The result was unprecedented destruction. The typical methods used to protect patient records in the orthodontic practice are seriously inadequate against most disastrous occurrences and could result in an almost total loss of the data. This would create major problems in trying to treat existing patients.

Experts estimate that failing to provide the necessary protection to New Orleans will now result in reconstruction costs that could be 15-20 times what would have been spent on the recommended preventive measures! It is also believed that rebuilding the city could take up to 10 years. Orthodontic practices that experience a disaster without having sufficient safeguards for patient records and office data could incur reconstruction costs that are a much greater percentage of the prevention costs than those shown above! That is because the costs of protecting the data, if done correctly, can be very small; yet the costs of trying to reconstruct records would be extremely high . . . if it is even possible.

Rather than just point out these obvious dangers, I am suggesting that you investigate two operating methods that can help you protect your valuable records: Paperless Operation and Internet-Based Management Software Delivery. And the irony is that current trends in the USA – and in other countries of the world – are already beginning to ‘push’ doctors toward these solutions, and for many reasons.

Paperless Operation

It is now technologically possible for all the following records to be maintained electronically by the practice:

Financial
Patient and billing party information
Treatment charts, plans, notes, etc.
Appointment schedules
Diagnostic records: photographs / images, cephs, x-rays and study models
Internal office communications
Insurance claims
Patient and referring doctor communications
Patient medical questionnaires
Management reports

Internet-Based Management Software Delivery

What is it? Your management software and patient data are located on powerful servers in a highly secure, remotely located datacenter. Networked workstations in the office access the application and data via the Internet using a broadband connection; typically DSL or Cable Modem. The records are available anywhere you have access to the Internet, 24/7.

This method of delivering management software and patient records is perfect for enhancing paperless operation. Using electronic records makes patient information more accessible and Internet-based software delivery enables this accessibility better than any other method.

There are many advantages to using Internet-based software delivery, but my comments here are limited to the protection of patient data and emergency operation capabilities it offers. If you operate in paperless mode and your office is destroyed by a natural disaster (or due to arson, theft, vandalism, etc.) all your patient records are safe because they are maintained in multiple formats and locations by the datacenter operator. Your records are available as soon as you have Internet access again, which is usually when telephone service is restored. If like most doctors you have arrangements with colleagues to temporarily share their office space in the case of such disasters, all you need is a PC/Mac/Thin Client and an Internet connection to be back in business.

Summary

The goal of this brief commentary is to:

Remind you that disaster, in one form or another, is always possible no matter where you are located;
Stress that failing to protect your patient records is irresponsible and extremely perilous;
Inform you that paperless operation and Internet-based software delivery are operating methods that can be used to help safeguard your records if you ever become a disaster victim; and
Encourage you to learn for yourself that these methods not only fully protect your records; they actually will cost you less than operating a typical local area network without the protection!

Most doctors think they are safe because they take a data backup home with them, although many fail to take even that simple precaution on a regular basis. The problem with using that method is that most orthodontists live in the communities where their practice is located. So in situations like New Orleans, those data backups might not have been protected, even if a paperless practice was being operated. Practices using paper records, plaster models, x-ray films, etc were almost certainly ravaged.

I want to make one final point for your consideration. The reality is that healthcare records are rapidly transitioning from paper to electronic form in the United States, and around the world. This migration is leading toward strict regulation and enforcement (criminal and monetary penalties) regarding how the records are safeguarded and made available upon demand. Hospital-based electronic records are already being impacted; they must be constantly replicated and stored in a separate location where access to them could be immediate. As a healthcare provider, you too will soon be faced with this requirement. So, my point is this: Why wait until it is mandated before you begin adequately safeguarding important data that, if destroyed, limits your ability to properly treat your patients and to earn a living? And, it can even cost you less than what you are paying now!

Charles A. Lewis

To learn more about paperless operation and/or Internet-based software delivery, visit these links:

http://www.advanced-ortho.net/articles/adpaperless.asp

http://www.advanced-ortho.net/ipd.asp

http://www.advanced-ortho.net/ipdfaq.asp

http://www.advanced-ortho.net/shownews.asp#id5

Charles A. Lewis is the CEO of Advanced Ortho Systems, LLC. His articles on paperless operation, practice automation, and Internet-based management software delivery have international readership. Charles also lectures on these subjects at seminars, dental colleges and study groups. He can be reached at 877.803.4412.

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