LATEST NEWS!
The Fair Work Commission has announced a 2.4% increase to the minimum wage effective from 1 July 2016. Read more about the Annual Wage Review 2015-16.
Changes to Professional Indemnity Insurance Requirements
The Medical Board has introduced a revised registration standard for all medical practitioners. As from 1 October 2016, any medical practitioner without appropriate retroactive cover for prior private practice (in Australia) may be liable for future claims. Doctors are personally responsible for meeting the revised standard and are being advised to check the retroactive date on their policy schedule ... read more
SMS Messaging Fact Sheet From Avant
Avant has developed a Fact Sheet that may be helpful if you are using SMS messaging to contact your patients. Merely providing a mobile phone number does not automatically mean they agree to receive SMS messages so you should be obtaining the patient's consent to receive messages and it should be clearly documented if the patient does not consent ... read more in the Tips for Sending SMS Messages Fact Sheet
National Cancer Screening Register
The Department of Health has announced that Telstra Health has been selected to develop and operate the new National Cancer Screening Register. This will support the expansion of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program ... read the Government's Media Release
Changes to Practice Incentives Program (PIP) eHealth Incentive
A new requirement has been added for practices' eligibility for the Practice Incentives Program (PIP) eHealth Incentive from 1 May 2016.
Practices will now be required to upload Shared Health Summaries to the My Health Record System for a minimum of 0.5% of the practice's standardised whole patient equivalent per payment quarter to remain eligible for the PIP eHealth Incentive payment ... read more
Medicare Benefit Cheques to Stop
From 1 July 2016, Medicare will cease issuing cheques. This means your patients will need to register their bank account details with Medicare in order to receive their payments - Medicare is asking practices to encourage their patients to register their bank account details ... read more
Removal of Obsolete MBS Items
From 1 July 2016, 24 items will be removed from the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) and two diagnostic imaging items will be restricted to patients under 16 years of age ... read more
Medical Benefits Schedule (MBS) Online
The 1 May 2016 MBS data files (XML, DOC, PDF and ZIP) are now available to download.
Read more on the MBS Online website.
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Did you know that ...
 last year 17,000 people who were diagnosed with confirmed influenza were hospitalised (nearly one-in-five of those diagnosed with influenza). An estimated 7% of these cases required admission to an intensive care unit. Those at increased risk of complications of influenza include; people aged over 65 years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People aged six months to five years and older than 15 years, pregnant women and anyone with a medical condition, such as severe asthma, diabetes or heart disease.
The Quadrivalent vaccination offers the same benefits as the trivalent vaccine, with an additional B-strain so four strains in total ... read more
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TOP TIP FOR ACCREDITATION
Our practice seeks and responds to patients' feedback on their experience of our practice to support our quality improvement activities.
Practices must actively seek feedback from their patients at least once every three years. Practices can use a validated experience questionnaire that has been approved by the RACGP; or you can develop an individual practice specific method that adheres to the requirements outlined in the RACGP Patient feedback guide.
References:
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| ACCREDITATION - ARE YOU READY?
Is your practice's Accreditation coming up this year?
Medical Directions can help to identify areas of your practice that may need improving by guiding you through the Accreditation process and assisting in implementing any changes that may be necessary. We offer a full Accreditation Package which includes onsite visits and ongoing consultation via phone, Skype and email.
Medical Directions can ...
- Create a new Policy and Procedure Manual to comply with the 4th Standards
- Set up your new practice and assist with purchasing equipment
- Orientate new GPs to your practice
- Training staff in the use of Best Practice and Medical Director
- Mentor Practice Managers
- Assist with Treatment Room policies and procedures
Let us customise a package to suit your practice.
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Did you know that you can upload your equipment manuals to knowNOW! - that way you can have everything in one place! You can either scan the hard-copy and upload it or search online for the PDF version. These can be uploaded under the Document Management tab. Easy to find on accreditation day!
Haven't seen how knowNOW! works yet? Then sign up today to receive one month's free trial of knowNOW! and once you realise how much it will help your practice it's just $38.95 per month which includes unlimited users!
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RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Soup
Perfect for the cooler months ahead!
Ingredients
1 cauliflower - chopped into florets
2 sweet potatoes - peeled and cubed
5 garlic cloves - chopped
1 tsp paprika
4 cups chicken stock
½ cup coconut milk
2 tbsp olive oil;
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to season
Method
Preheat oven to 180°
Place the cauliflower, sweet potatoes and garlic on a baking sheet
Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper
Roast in the oven for 35-40 minutes until vegetables are soft
Transfer the vegetables to a saucepan
Pour the stock into the saucepan and add the paprika
Bring to a simmer and then purée the soup
Pour in the coconut milk and stir thoroughly
Continue simmering until warm and season to taste before serving if required
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The Paleo Place
The Sunshine Coast's favourite Paleo Cafe - early bird discounts apply from 7am-8am
We are open for breakfast and lunch every day of the week and dinner on Saturday nights from 6:00pm with a selection of delicious Paleo meals, snacks, desserts, juices, smoothies and coffee available. Coffee, freshly squeezed juices and smoothies are available daily from 7:00am and meals from 7:30am.
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Kathryn Davis
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I would love to hear your feedback on my newsletters or if you have a story to share or a question to ask please email me.
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DISCLAIMER This communication contains information which is copyright to Medical Directions. It should not be copied, disclosed or distributed without the authority of Medical Directions. Except as required by law, Medical Directions does not represent, warrant and/or guarantee that this communication is free of errors, virus, interception or interference. All reasonable efforts have been taken to ensure the accuracy of material contained in this publication. It is not intended that this publication be comprehensive or to render advice.
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