For immediate release:
July 27, 2010
Chicago, Ill.- To assist physicians in selecting the most appropriate software to run their practices, the American Medical Association (AMA) and the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) developed a new online toolkit, available today. Free to members of the AMA and the MGMA, the "Selecting a Practice Management System" toolkit is accessible on the AMA and MGMA Web sites.
"Selecting the right software to manage a practice has become increasingly challenging due to the rapidly-changing health care environment," said AMA President Cecil B. Wilson, M.D. "Physicians who submit claims and do other business functions electronically and those who plan to participate in the government's EHR incentive program will need to upgrade or replace their current practice management software. The AMA is pleased to offer physicians guidance to make this transition smoother."
The toolkit provides a roadmap to make it easier for physicians to select and purchase the most appropriate practice management system (PMS) software. Physician practices can use this information to establish their organizational needs and take advantage of recent improvements in automation.
"Now that many of the public and private health plans have committed to streamlining practice revenue cycle management, the last piece of the puzzle is to ensure that the PMS software can take full advantage of those opportunities. We anticipate that this new toolkit will be an essential reference for physicians and practice staff," said MGMA President and CEO William F. Jessee, M.D., FACMPE.
The new toolkit will provide physician practices with:
* a five-step guide to PMS software selection,
* a comprehensive checklist of PMS software features and functionalities that physician practices can use to determine what their practice needs, and
* a sample "request for proposal" that physician practices can employ in their communications with PMS software vendors.
In a later phase of the project, an online directory of PMS software vendors that includes self-reported PMS software features and functionalities will be added to the toolkit in the Winter of 2010.
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For a copy of the toolkit or more information, contact:
Lisa Lecas
AMA Media Relations
(312) 464-5980
[email protected]
Liz Boten
MGMA Press Relations
(303) 799-1111, ext. 1332
[email protected]