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What Does “Direct Supervision” Mean in Non-Hospital Diagnostic Testing Facilities?

Reposted From an article by Amanda Howard of Florida Healthcare Law by FSOMA on July 22, 2022

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, commonly known as CMS, requires physician supervision of certain services as a condition for reimbursement. The required supervision level depends on the type of service performed, the setting where the service is performed and the physical location of where the service is performed. Adhering to the proper protocol is critical, as services furnished without the required level of physician supervision are not reimbursable by Medicare and may potentially have even more significant consequences, including civil and criminal penalties.

Types of Physician Supervision

Generally, there are three levels of supervision for diagnostic testing in non-hospital facilities:

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Having Good Boundaries in Our Profession

One network that can help us as professionals with out of control, inappropriate or addictive type behavior is the Professionals Resource Network, Inc. (PRN) - For Florida practitioners who find themselves in trouble. Don’t wait for discipline to be enacted, get support now through PRN. You can report someone, or yourself and get help.  For someone facing discipline by the Board of Acupuncture it may be a way to maintain your license.  They provide counseling and monitoring to ensure public safety. 

If you have a problem, get help before you cross the line. 

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Cervical Cancer + Chinese Medicine

January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month in the United State. According to the National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC), more than 14,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer annually.  

Chinese Medicine has been found to offer relief to people experiencing side effects of cancer treatment.  Some of the most common side effects of cancer treatment are fatigue, nausea, pain, and loss of appetite. 

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Live at the Forum

This past weekend was my first live acupuncture seminar since COVID.  I have been overwhelmed by the sheer energy generated by a group of colleagues (APs, students and teacher) gathering together to learn and study.  I did not know how much I had missed this. 

It was a privilege to study scalp acupuncture with the 3rd generation teacher of the Fang's Scalp Acupuncture lineage Huang Zhuying.  Fang Yunpeng was the developer of acupuncture anesthesia and scalp acupuncture during a time when pain drug supplies were in short supply.  He passed the system to his son Fang Benzheng who further refined and developed the system. The teacher of the class Huang Zhuying is the 3rd generation.  I'll post the class picture later. 

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Is your patient's disease taking her hostage? The FBI may be able to help.

I've been listening in again to the Qilogical podcasts produced by Michael Max   (Thank you to my new puppy for taking me on walks) After Michael spoke at the 2012 FSOMA Conference on the 10 Formula Families*  I've been an occasional listener to his podcast and enjoyed his clinic newsletter for the thoughtful comments and insights.  

This week's interview was quite fascinating as it brought into the acupuncture clinic the writings of an FBI negotiator that finding the "No" place with your patient could be more usefully ultimately than trying to get to agreement or a "Yes".  Thinking about your patient's disease as a hostage taker and your patient as the hostage can give you more tools in how to navigate the healing process. I've been in practice over 20 years and still struggle with those patients with whom I don't seem to be able to communicate the value in what I'm offering, who drop out of care just when we seem to be getting somewhere.  I also seem to have forgotten about the maxim that "All Diseases Come from the Heart" and the podcast took me back to some basics. 

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