Picis introduces charge capture solution for oncology treatment centers

Nov 4 2010

Picis today introduced LYNX I/Point^™, a charge capture solution designed specifically for hospital-owned infusion and oncology treatment centers - where therapies are very expensive and accurately charging for services can be challenging.

“Infusion services charge capture can be difficult. Picis LYNX makes it easy, provides our nurses with tools to be compliant and allows them to do what they do best - take care of the patient”

As the latest addition to the LYNX suite of revenue management solutions, I/Point works alongside E/Point^® (for emergency departments) and C/Point^® (for hospital-owned clinics) to complete a health system's comprehensive charging strategy and provide consistent and accurate revenue management across sites and outpatient care operations.

Outpatient care is recognized as an appropriate and less costly alternative to acute inpatient care, comprising 80 to 90 percent of all cancer care, and growth is expected to continue. Cost savings, improved efficiencies and new technologies are among the driving forces behind this shift in cancer care delivery. One in five patients visiting hospitals and health centers today seek treatment from infusion and cancer treatment centers, and nearly 75 percent of these organizations project growth in oncology facilities and expansion of new treatment therapies over the next several years, according to a recent survey conducted by the Healthcare Management Academy.

"Consistent charge capture for infusions and injections is one of the biggest challenges hospitals face, and it represents a significant portion of outpatient revenue," said Reggie Allen, MBA, RN, system director, quality and clinical operations at CHRISTUS Health in Houston. "Picis LYNX solutions simplify this process for clinicians, enabling them to reduce documentation errors and ensure compliance while they focus on patient care."

"Hospital-owned infusion and oncology treatment centers have a significant impact on an organization's operations and represent a growing portion of their health care revenue- roughly 150 infusions are delivered each day in some of the larger infusion and oncology treatment centers. As a result, compliance, accuracy and charge capture in these departments are becoming increasingly challenging," said Mike DeTolla, senior vice president of revenue management solutions, Picis LYNX Medical Systems. "Along with E/Point in the emergency department and C/Point for outpatient clinics, I/Point is an integral piece of our revenue/charge capture suite that hospitals and health systems rely on to consistently manage and improve performance of their outpatient care operations."

Like E/Point and C/Point, I/Point helps health care organizations overcome outpatient-specific revenue challenges with key benefits specifically designed to optimize oncology centers' accuracy and efficiency:

• Charging integrity - With hospital infusions becoming an increasing focus of Recovery Audit Contractors (RAC), I/Point's infusion services calculator provides documentation of compliant charging strategies for chemotherapy and intravenous services.
• Ease of use - A simple user interface identifies for clinicians when an evaluation and management (E/M) facility visit level needs to be calculated. This is often overlooked in infusion centers when a patient is being treated for a known issue but has an unexpected adverse reaction to therapy that requires further care.
• Simplified charging processes - I/Point's infusion service calculator requires input of only the most basic elements of the infusion regimen, removing the need for clinical staff to memorize initial, primary, sequential and concurrent service rules.
• Consistent compliance - I/Point offers compliant facility level calculation with a consistent methodology that aligns with the 11 Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) guidelines outlined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

"Infusion services charge capture can be difficult. Picis LYNX makes it easy, provides our nurses with tools to be compliant and allows them to do what they do best - take care of the patient," said Jim Davis, RN, MSN, director of emergency services CarolinaEast Health System in New Bern, N.C.

More than 700 hospital clients representing more than 22 million patient encounters annually use LYNX revenue management solutions, making Picis the market leader in tools to help hospitals derive compliant and consistent revenue for a repeatable return on investment.