Health Care Software Brings Clients Up to Date on MDS 3.0: Functionality and Training Delivered Ahead of Schedule

Farmingdale, NJ - Farmingdale, NJ - Health Care Software (HCS) has announced that full MDS 3.0 functionality has been programmed into their INTERACTANT Clinical and Financial Software System and HCS clients have already received comprehensive training. HCS’s incorporation and client training for the updated version of the mandatory assessment, compliance and reimbursement tool for long-term care providers comes more than a month ahead of the national deadline of October 1, 2010.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) states MDS - short for Minimum Data Set – was designed to improve the reliability, accuracy, and usefulness of the MDS and to include the resident in the clinical assessment process. The announcement that MDS 2.0 would be replaced by 3.0 sent an unsettling wave through the industry. The revision of the federal mandate would demand considerable resources in terms of software programming, technical and staff training at long-term care facilities nationally. And, since compliance has a direct impact on Medicare reimbursement the ramification for missing the deadline or inefficiencies in the application of MDS 3.0 would have direct and significant impact on facilities’ bottom lines.

Carrie O’Connell, Vice President of Clinical Development at HCS points to two factors that allowed HCS to alleviate its clients’ concerns and get them ready ahead of schedule. The first factor was the existing fully integrated nature of the HCS INTERACTANT System and the second factor was an early, proactive approach to the challenge.

Existing Integration Helps MDS 3.0 Transition

“Because the modules of INTERACTANT are fully integrated, it was easier for us to adjust to the changes,” she says. O’Connell says a series of prompts, that ensure coding for care provided to each resident is done correctly, allows accurate information to flow to the financial modules and ensures correct reimbursements.

Proactive Approach Pays Off

The direction for those built prompts and other new functionality came in part from HCS’s team and their understanding of LTC workflows, but also came to a large degree from HCS’s effort to proactively involve their customers early on in the transition process.

“Moving to MDS 3.0 was unusual because it’s a change that affects everybody, so we started early,” says O’Connell. “In late 2009 we started arranging conference calls with our clients asking what functionality they loved and what they would like to see, so all our clients had some input.” HCS took this input along with the coming changes mandated by MDS 3.0 to develop an optimal blended solution.

In June HCS was ready to preview the changes and began live demos of the new functionality. By late Summer, with full MDS 3.0 functionality programmed into INTERACTANT, HCS began client training. “The training is on-site,” says O’Connell. “Their hands are on the keyboard, we have a testing environment and they create scenarios and we work through it together.

” According to O’Connell the clients are gaining double benefit from the training. “They are asking a lot of coding questions, which is OK because our team is knowledgeable in this area and we also reference the CMS manual. So, the clients are not just learning about our software updates, they are learning to use the (MDS 3.0) tool at the same time. ”

Built-in Tools Streamline Transition

Assisting clients not only with the transition to 3.0 but more importantly with its efficient, ongoing day-to-day use, INTERACTANT offers a number of built-in tools. The MDS functionality, typical of INTERACTANT, is intuitive with prompts and links that walk users through processes. There is also a MDS 3.0 home page for each resident. Including a resident photo, the page becomes one-stop shop from which users can access the clinical records, the A/R side, and then follow guided paths if something unusual is happening to that person.

CMS Updates to Evolve

According to O’Connell, CMS is not trying to make this release of MDS 3.0 the be-all and end-all. They recognize there will be changes as input and specific cases come in from across the country. O’Connell anticipates the highest number of updates from CMS – many, likely to be small – in the first month. “After that the number is likely to settle a bit” she says. Through CMS and association involvement, HCS will stay apprised of these changes and alert its clients so they can continue to optimize their advantage in efficiently applying MDS 3.0.

HCS Results Par for the Course

HCS’s preparedness for MDS 3.0 can be seen as commendable, especially in light of the fact that a significant number of software solutions providers had to push back their delivery dates for their MDS 3.0 modifications and training. For HCS, however, this leadership role is par for the course. “The care our clients provide to their residents; the processes they use and the management tools are always evolving,” said HCS President Tom Fahey. “Our software has always evolved too, proactively, to give HCS clients a decided advantage.” With MDS 3.0 under control for HCS clients, the company is already looking at and preparing for other significant regulatory changes on the horizon such as 5010 and ICD-10. “If it affects our clients, we’ll be ready for it,” says Fahey.

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