CMS posts podcast of August teleconference “ICD-10 Implementation Strategies for Physicians”

On Tuesday of this week the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) sent out an email announcing they posted the content online for the August teleconference titled “ICD-10 Implementation Strategiesfor Physicians.”

I missed the original call, so I was glad to see the announcement.  So far I’ve only had a chance to listen to the first podcast, but on first impression I think anyone looking for a primer on the ICD-10 switchover will be well served by it. 

One note, however.  While I think Dr. Daniel Duval did a nice job with his presentation, I do think he downplays the impact the switch from ICD-9 to ICD-10 will have on encounter note documentation requirements.  He makes it sound as if providers will only need to learn a few new codes and revise their super bill.  I would argue that he underestimates the additional detail that the more precise ICD-10 codes will require.  Improved accuracy of etiology, disease process, and description (e.g. laterality) will require providers to document with greater detail than they perhaps are accustomed to doing. 

On a completely different note, even though CMS calls these “podcasts”, I can’t find them through the iTunes store.  So for those of you who want to listen to these on your iPhone/iPod/iPad/iTouch, but are a little tech challenged here’s a tip on how to get the files into iTunes.

1. Download each of the four “Podcast” files to your computer (I’m talking PC, not  MAC).  Each will appear as a ZIP folder on your computer;
2. Open the ZIP folder;
3. Drag each .mpg file into iTunes.  The .mpg files will now appear in your Music library.

 

To make finding these files easier, you can change the names and the genre.  To do so:

1. Right click on the file name in iTunes;
2. Select “Get Info” from the popup menu;
3. Select the “Info” tab;
4. In the “Name” field enter the name you’d like to use for the file;
5. In the “Genre” field enter something to categorize them by.  For example, I use BOC (my company initials);
6. Select “OK” and you’re done.

For those with an iPad, you can also download and drag the slide show PDF file into iTunes which will add it to iBooks. Just as with the audio file, you can change the file name and, in this case “Category”, by right clicking on the file, select “Get Info”, and so on.  The process is the same listed above for the audio files.

Anyone needing help getting these files into iTunes is welcome to contact me.

Straight ahead,

Bob