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In This Issue
PHMG Doctors Share Their Stories
National Doctors Day
PeaceHealth asked doctors to share their stories and why they got into medicine. We continue to feature their profiles through the month of March.

Kim Ruscher, MD Pediatric Surgery: "I love taking care of children, and I also love the diverse number of surgeries that pediatric surgeons offer."

Robin Virgin, MD Family Medicine: "If you can make just small meaningful changes and see their progress, that can be so very rewarding, and that is what I love the most."

Lent Reflections
Journey of grace and growth
The Center for Mission is offering daily reflections throughout the observance of Lent, the 40-day period of prayer, penance, sacrifice and good works before Easter. Click here each morning to receive a new inspirational reflection.
Dr. Howard Graman
It's been said that medicine is a calling. And I believe it, especially in times like these.

With the increasing demands and financial pressures faced by clinics and medical professionals, it's clear that something special motivates physicians to do what they do. I see and hear firsthand just how much our own PHMG providers sacrifice and how hard they work on our patients' behalf.

Thank you for your commitment to serving our communities, including the most vulnerable in our population. You change lives for the better day in and day out.

When we chose to go into medicine, we knew it wouldn't be easy. As the saying goes, though, "nothing worth doing is easy."

So...to our physicians this Doctors Day, please know that you are greatly appreciated (and so is your family). Your life's work as a physician is indeed a calling. I hope that amidst the challenges, you find the part that makes it all worthwhile.

Epic ICD-10 Training
When you come back to work on Monday you may see some minor changes in Epic. As part of our preparation for the transition to ICD-10 this fall, we will be updating Epic on March 31. The most noticeable difference providers will encounter is that the Epic ICD-10 diagnosis calculator will fire more frequently for additional specificity in the diagnosis.

There are a plethora of resources available to make this transition easier for you.

Training: The ICD-10 program team has put together excellent video education materials for each of the specialties via the ICD-10 Education website. PHMG leadership has decided that all physicians/providers who use ICD-10 are required to sign-in and view the introduction and the material for their specialty by Aug. 1. The site is designed to be very intuitive. If you need any guidance please review the Instructions Guide.

Reference guides: Specialty specific reference guides for ICD-10 Documentation are available for you to print.

Schedule an appointment: If you need help, please ask your clinic manager to schedule an appointment for you with a credentialed educator. They can provide support, including how to update your diagnosis preference list.

Epic resources: Epic educational resources are available via the Epic Education intranet.

Look for more details on the PeaceHealth ICD-10 intranet site. If you have questions, you may contact Juanita Doerksen MD, the physician/provider liaison for ICD-10 at PeaceHealth.
Performance Dashboard
PHMG VISTA Metrics for March
For a snapshot of PHMG's performance on VISTA measures as of March 21, 2014, click the graphic below:
Pakorn/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
(What is VISTA? It's PeaceHealth's five-year strategic plan. See details on the VISTA site.)
Medical Group Business
Monthly MGLT Report - March 2014
Highlights from the Medical Group Leadership Team (MGLT) in March include:
  • Perspective of Epic Ambulatory Go Live
  • Patient Experience Updates
  • ICD-10 Updates
Questions and comments are welcome. Please contact MGLT members or your local PHMG leadership.

(What is MGLT? It's the team made up of network medical directors, vice presidents and system executives. MGLT sets the direction for PHMG. View PHMG leadership page.)
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