tools

First, do no harm. 

It’s the oath by which you swear to abide. But, what about when it comes to taking care of yourself? 

Physicians as a whole are notoriously bad at taking time for themselves. They’ll work double shifts, walk rounds until blisters form and legs fail, and give everything they have to every patient … and then remember that they forgot to eat lunch. 

But, abiding by the Hippocratic Oath should also apply to self care, and self care is at least partially about making sure you’re enjoying a high quality of life. 

Here’s a look at three newish physician tools designed to help you improve your quality of life–both in and out of the healthcare setting:

1) SERMO

It’s a virtual doctors lounge, therapy couch and professional conference all wrapped up under one URL. It’s SERMO, the top social network for physicians in the United States and around the world. 

Just what you need right? Another social media platform where people with no actual knowledge about a topic spout off with ill-informed opinions?

Well that’s not SERMO.

SERMO has 600,000 verified and credentialed members, so you’ll only be interacting with other doctors. And, you’ll get to discuss whatever you want, ask any questions you need to or commiserate around any topic–because all of the conversations on SERMO are confidential. 

It really is one of the great physician tools for finding balance, because it lets you blow off some steam, ask sensitive questions, seek counsel on a difficult case or simply get something off your chest. 

Learn more about SERMO. 

2) Motiv

Finally, a fitness-tracking device you’ll actually want to wear. 

Sure, Fitbits and Apple Watches are fantastic tools, but they can be a bit bulky and cumbersome–especially for physicians. 

Now there is Motiv, a ring-sized activity tracker, heart rate monitor and sleep sensor that simply slips onto your finger and delivers form, fit and function without being obtrusive. 

It’s made from ultralight titanium, so it’s durable. It’s waterproof. It’s equipped with a battery that lasts up to five days. And, it comes in slate gray or rose gold.

But, most importantly, the Motiv measures your active minutes, active heart rate, calories burned, distance you’ve walked, sleep duration and resting heart rate. It’s one of the physician tools that’s small enough not to be noticeable, but powerful enough to have a big impact on your overall health and wellness. 

Learn more about Motiv. 

3) Nuheara IQbuds

The problem with most truly wireless ear buds is that they don’t deliver exceptional sound quality. Sure, you may be free from the cords that are always snagging buttons, briefcases and purse straps. But, what good is that if you can’t hear what you want to hear? 

Introducing: Nuheara IQbuds. 

These wireless ear buds have been making big noise in the industry over the past few months, racking up award after award at conference after conference. 

Not only do they deliver high quality high fidelity sound, but they also allow you to amplify speech, selectively tune out the world around you thanks to super-intelligent noise cancellation technology and blend the best of your digital music with the sounds around you to make sure you have absolute situational awareness. 

And, they do it all without those pesky cords. 

Nuheara IQbuds are one of the rare physician tools that can improve the quality of your life both in and out of the office. 

Learn more about them. 

Do no harm … to yourself

Taking care of yourself is as important as taking care of patients. Use these tools to make sure you’re at your best.  

*Elliot Health System does not endorse specific technology highlighted in blogs – all references are for the purpose of awareness of new medical technology only.

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LinkedIn groups for healthcare professionals are an effective and strategic professional tool for physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants to utilize. LinkedIn provides a wide range of networking options and enables healthcare professionals such as yourself to connect to peers, patients, researchers, recruiters or employers.

One of the important benefits of using LinkedIn is connecting with other healthcare professionals that may be outside of your area of expertise or geographic location. Another benefit is having a social media tool for potential patients to seek you out is valuable to broaden your community. And finally, in the digital world, potential employers or recruiters frequently use LinkedIn to explore professionals such as reviewing a curriculum vitae or determining your connections with educational facilities or your research network.

Whatever your reasons are for utilizing LinkedIn groups for healthcare professionals, becoming familiar with the tools it offers is necessary. LinkedIn allows you to connect to different groups in your professional area of expertise or in areas that you would like to network with. The following are several groups that any healthcare professional would benefit with becoming connected to. 

1. One of the larger groups on LinkedIn to access in order to network for employment is, IHR, which is a group for healthcare or pharmaceutical professionals. This group would allow a healthcare professional to network with over 300,000 people to find new employment.
2. Healthcare Executives Network, with over 200,000 members would allow you to connect with executives, managers and other healthcare professionals. This group describers their network as “sharing best practices, collaborate and build lasting relationships”. This group could certainly provide you with education, support and an ability to network with the healthcare industry. 
3. Healthcare Industry Professionals Group, with over 70,000 members is a group seeking to network with a wide range of healthcare professionals. This group was created in order to “discuss innovation and the technology and regulatory changes that are impacting the industry”. There are always changes in regulations, technology and health insurances so being connected to groups that regularly discuss and share experience is useful for medical professionals. 
4. Networking for Healthcare Professionals, with 6,700 members a smaller number comparatively speaking but boasts an effective group for medical professionals. This group describes their purpose to “exchange ideas…learn everything you need to know upon completing your residency or fellowship and beginning your career.” This group is associated with MD Preferred Services which is a resource for medical professionals to “leverage their time and resources.”

5. Medical Devices Group, with over 300,000 members is a LinkedIn group of medical professionals with 41 different subgroups across a wide range of specialties and geographic locations. This group seeks to provide networking, medical content and opportunities to connect in person. A valuable and wide ranging group for healthcare professionals. 

There are thousands of LinkedIn groups for healthcare professionals and millions of members on LinkedIn so whatever your medical area of expertise there is likely a group that would support your professional plans. Go ahead, starting linking up today!

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Want to add forums to your list of physician tools? If so, make sure to check out our free resource below.

With nearly two thirds of the adult U.S. population (65 percent) now using some form of social media, healthcare professionals can’t afford to ignore it. Many physicians shy away from it due to HIPAA laws and strict regulations, but this shouldn’t hold you back from promoting yourself and your business.

In a crowded field that’s often criticized for lack of personal connections, sharing a piece of yourself with the digital world can improve yourself and your business exponentially. 

Why Physicians Should Use Social Media

1. Become an Influencer – Social media is an ideal space to establish thought leadership and expert knowledge. It provides a platform with which to share your thoughts and opinions.
2. Build Your Brand – Building up your personal brand, and that of your practice, requires an online presence, and is an important part of your marketing strategy. Most employers, and more often even patients, will use the Internet to vet doctors. They look at patient reviews, published papers, and social media profiles. Without them you’re missing out on an opportunity to stand out among the crowd.
3. Stay On Top of Healthcare News – Between data breaches, government policies, and the latest procedures healthcare is constantly in the headlines. Social media keeps you up-to-date on the latest news, trends, and policy changes.
4. Networking with Other Physicians – Social media allows for valuable information sharing that you used to only get through papers and conferences. There are many great discussions among physicians on issues of patient care, techniques, and the future of healthcare. By joining in on these conversations, you are benefiting your patients, your practice, and your career.
5. Create Stronger Relationships With Patients – Although a slightly more controversial topic, social media is also a great way to connect with patients. Although you should never give specific advice to patients, you can set up support groups for patients with specific ailments, or provide resources to family members caring for loved ones. You can also provide general health and well being tips so patients can take an active responsibility in their own care at home.

Physicians, nurses, and hospitals are also one of the most trusted sources online. Fifty five to 60 percent of people trust physicians’ posts on social media, compared to trusting only 30 to 40 percent of posts from health insurance companies or government organizations.

However, social media use shouldn’t be taken lightly. Whether furthering your personal career, or leading your office in their efforts it’s important to consider your patients’ privacy. The U.S. Department of Health in Human Services offers this worksheet for offices considering launching a social media campaign.

HIPAA Laws You Should Know

Many physicians site HIPAA laws as a reason they avoid social media. But you can have a successful social media presence while still maintaining HIPAA compliance. Remember the following when crafting your social media strategy.

• Write a social media policy and revisit it annually to ensure compliance updates.
• Make sure you eliminate all identifiers including names, location, any kind of dates, etc.
• Consider the “elevator” rule. If you wouldn’t discuss it on an elevator, don’t post about it on social media.
• Thing about separating your personal social profiles and your professional ones.
• Always remember to get detailed written consent from patients before sharing anything about them, including pictures, online.

You should also routinely revisit your strategy to ensure your maintaining the proper security and privacy requirements.

Getting Started

Social media allows you to create better relationships with patients, professionals, and employers. There’s no question that physicians should use social media. Find which platforms they are, and get started.

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There are a number of valuable internal medicine tools for physicians that can streamline your business practices while maximizing your productivity and earnings, many of which are ACP (advance care planning) softwares or diagnosis tools for major illnesses. Many of these apps have been rated highly according to GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation) standards, which determine their overall influence on the outcomes of cases and patient record availability. Listed below are a few of the best internal medicine tools on the market today.

GRADEpro GDT
GRADEpro GDT is a user friendly, universal web-based option for outlining and supplying information that assists you in making diagnoses and formulating treatment plans. It builds compact summary charts for organized reviews and healthcare examinations, in addition to effecting the establishment of medical practice regulations and other files that make public health policy recommendations. This internal medicine tool allows you to easily monitor the entire procedure of developing treatment plans.

It allows you to handle your tasks as a group with the identification and management of possible conflicts of interest, the creation of your project’s scope, the creation and organization of questions or lists that identify outcomes of interest and rates their values, and the preparation of evidence profiles according to the GRADE Evidence to Decision platform. It also backs up all of your computer work on a secure web-based storage server, enabling you to communicate your findings to your team and to work together on the case from anywhere on earth. 

Essential Evidence Plus
EE+ is a highly effective and complete medical diagnosis system that works data from 9,000 diagnoses into your own medical workflows. This ingenious physician’s application contains more than 13,000 topics, regulations, abstracts, tools, pictures, and diagnoses that cover the most prevalent ailments, diseases, and surgical procedures that physicians encounter on a daily basis.

All recommendations carry an evidence rating that appropriately grades their value based on all evidence found in any pertinent records. On top of that, EE+ is closely connected to Cochrane Systematic Review abstracts, in addition to the complete text of these reviews with a Cochrane Library membership, which ensures that you have permanent access to the best quality evidence-supported medical information in existence. 

ACP Practice Advisor
ACP Practice Advisor is a series of modules that addresses certain aspects of medical practice, including providing patient background information. The Practice Biopsy is a self-assessment tool which sets up a baseline score in assessing all ACP Practice Advisor users. Your staff members may work on the Practice Biopsies independently or in small clusters, at any time and in any sequence. The tool creates a case study for each practice as it finishes the ACP Practice Biopsy and effects adjustments based on the provided resources.

It has record-keeping features to help monitor the progress of each project as time passes, recognizing possibilities for improvement by comparing your clinic to others. Its virtual resource library integrates books, articles, videos, tutorials, easy-to-download guides, policy templates, and an assortment of apps from every module into a browsable compendium. 

Other Internal Medicine Tools
Aside from the above-listed resources, there are a number of additional internal medicine tools and apps that simplify the complex process of diagnosing and treating patients. A few of these popular and efficacious internal medicine tools are the RPA Advance Planning Tool, the ACP Decisions app, the palliAGED Decision Assist tool, INTERACT tools and templates, and the Consumer Toolkit for Healthcare Advance Planning offered by the American Bar Association.

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Are you interested in finding even more physician tools? If so, make sure to take a peek at our Physicians Resources Sheet! It’s free!

Treating your patients and running your practice will keep any doctor constantly busy and give them very little free time. Luckily we live in an age where there are plenty of resources available to help you to be productive and to manage your time. These resources include apps for your phone, software and other physician tools available to you on the internet.

An app that is essential for productivity and time management is called Epocrates. This particular app has many uses. The main use for looking up drug details and drug interaction information, but there are other uses as well! It can be used to look up other doctors for referrals and can even be used to calculate patient information. This includes such things as BMI and other important information that may be required to give to the patient.

Beyond your patients, you also have to manage your practice including scheduling and payroll. Luckily, there are now programs designed to make handling both of these things much easier. One such program is called Shift Planning. The entire setup of Shift Planning is meant to make setting schedules and paying your employees both quick and easy. And, when your day is booked, these thing are greatly appreciated.

If you’re looking for more specialized help with maintaining your education, keeping up on the newest research and finding resources such as insurance for medical personnel then the American Medical Association website is where you will want to turn. Their website has sections for each of these topics and much more!

Have you ever just wanted to connect to other physicians? Knowing that the person you are speaking with may have dealt with the situation you are dealing with is a valuable resource. Luckily, the doc2doc Forums exists and provide exactly that form of service. This tool is an excellent way to create new connections and network with others who do the same type of work that you do.

Sometimes you need specific information about other providers. An excellent resource if you need a National Provider Identifier (NPI) number is the NPPES NPI Registry. This registry allows you to quickly search a database to locate these numbers as you need them.

Whatever you are trying to accomplish with your practice, there are physician tools available for you. You just have to know where to look find them and decide which tools would be the most beneficial to you.

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Do you want a visual guide so that you can remember these resources? We’ve generated one just for you!