Issue 40 January 9, 2015

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Issue 40


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Contact Vision Source® at 888-558-2020 or [email protected]


Top Story

greenwood

A Dream Is About to Come True

I'm thrilled to be able to tell you about the Optical DreamSM Powered by Vision Source®, a one-of-a-kind practice development initiative that is about to be launched. The Vision Source® team has developed the Optical DreamSM program with the goal of providing unique training and rewards to all participating staff members.

dream

The 2014 member survey revealed that the vast majority of Vision Source® optometrists have a strong desire for a solution of this nature. The Optical DreamSM is a comprehensive program designed to improve the patient experience and increase the profitability of your practice through the sale of multiple pairs of eyewear, antireflective treatments and annual supplies of contact lenses. During the past several months, Dr. Walt West, our vice president of practice development has led a multidisciplinary team to create the Optical DreamSM.

The result is a training program that is engaging, rewarding and provides great incentives to all staff who participate in the program. Optical DreamSM offers an online, interactive training via an adult learning platform that includes written lessons accompanied by audio, video role-play demonstrations, and a simple, fun testing format to insure that participation is enjoyable and delivers results in practice performance. In addition, optical and office staff will have an opportunity to win cash, prizes and travel.

Optical DreamSM is an example of the unparalleled initiatives that Vision Source® can deliver to its network. In 2014, we added more members than any other year since our founding in 1991. If you ever wondered whether vendors take note of our size and strength, the Optical DreamSM will help you appreciate how important you and your peers are to them. It's a marvelous program, and I encourage you to learn more by participating in our upcoming webinars hosted by Dr. West with special appearances by his new friends Dr. Doofus and Electra, the "optical person."

The first phase of Optical DreamSM launches this month and will be focused on increase sales of multiple pairs and anti-reflective treatments.

Be well,
Jim Greenwood
President and CEO
Vision Source®



Learn More

Online registration for the Optical DreamSM powered by Vision Source® opens in mid-January at visionsourceopticaldream.com. Stay tuned for an e-mail message for the date that we go live. In the meantime, be sure to go to our Vimeo channel to catch up on all of the optometric exploits of the folks from All Y’all Eye Care.

Dr. Walt West, Dr. Doofus and Electra will be hosting a webinar on Thursday, Jan. 27, at 8 p.m. CST to answer more questions about the Optical DreamSM. Register here.

An additional VSRF webinar will be hosted by Dr. West on Tuesday, Jan. 20, at 11 a.m., 12 p.m., and 1 p.m. CST. Click on the time you wish to attend for the registration page.

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  Optical DreamSM

dream

VSR: The Vision Source® Secret

In this 8th installment of the Optical DreamSM series, Dr. Walt West hears from Dr. Doofus and optician Electra, who displays her new-found knowledge about how to present benefits of eyewear. Dr. Doofus says that having her go to these meetings has made a difference to the practice. Hear how.

dream

  Breaking News

2015 Exchange® Registration Is Now Open

Reserve your spot now for the Vision Source® Exchange® in Phoenix, April 29-May 2

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The 2014 Exchange® in Boston attracted more than 3,000 doctors, staff, friends, family and vendors, and the 2015 Exchange® in Phoenix promises to be even bigger and better. So make your plans early to come.

Highlights:

  • General Session and Learning Labs
  • Up to 8 hours of free CE credit
    • In 2015, attendees can earn up to 8 hours of CE credit at no cost. As before, classes start on Wednesday in the afternoon. Then on Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning, Food for Thought, one-hour breakfast CE sessions will precede the General Session or Learning Labs.
  • 100,000 square feet of exhibits
    • In addition to advanced clinical equipment, the latest in frame designs, the newest contact lens technology and much more, the meeting features show-only specials that offer tremendous savings.
  • Chance to connect With colleagues and friends
    • From the kickoff (under the stars at the Arizona Center) to the closing party at Rawhide, a recreation of a 1880s Old West town, and in between, you’ll have plenty of opportunity to talk business or not with friends and colleagues.

Register now for The 2015 Exchange®. Click here to register or copy and paste this link into your browser: http://registration.experientevent.com/ShowVSM151/

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February is AMD Awareness Month

amd

February is Age-related Macular Degeneration Awareness Month. To help you educate your patients on what is now the leading cause of blindness for people 60 years and older, we've prepared the following:

You can also order personalized counter cards and posters through FedEx Office or Office Depot.

  ICD-10 Coding Challenge

Counting Down to ICD-10 Implementation

While there have been two delays in implementing ICD-10 in the past, there is less likelihood of a delay again in 2015. The delay in 2014 literally took an act of congress; and U.S. Rep. Pete Sessions and U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, who sponsored the 2014 delay in the SGR bill, have stated that they will not support a delay in 2015. The SGR bill will have to be voted on by the end of March, and, without an ICD-10 delay in that bill, Oct 1. 2015, is very likely to be the implementation date.

Therefore, it is in every member’s interest to be prepared for ICD-10. It would be much better to be prepared and have ICD-10 delayed, than to be unprepared and have ICD-10 implemented. Are you ready? How would you code this case?

code

Case #20

33 YO WF

  • CC: blurred vision
  • HPI: both eyes, mild, ongoing, for a few months, wants new glasses, bright light bothersome
  • Medical Hx: unremarkable
  • Ocular Hx: "birth defect" of pupil
  • BVA: OD: 20/25- OS: 20/25-
  • External: irregular shaped pupils OU, with incomplete closure of iris at 6 O’clock OU
  • Internal: unremarkable

How would you code this case using the ICD-10 Code Set? Email your answer to [email protected]. You will automatically receive an acknowledgement and the correcting coding for the case.


  Fresh Day® and Fresh 30® Success Stories

A "Particular" Patient Makes Convincing Switch

"Fresh Day® lenses offer peace of mind, effortless fit and great compliance at a great price, both for the patient and our office. The Fresh Day® lenses instantly became our go-to lens for all our spherical fits as soon as we saw a very positive response from one of our very particular patients. This is a woman who has used every trial in our office and even some we don't carry in our office, with no relief of her dry eye symptoms. FreshDayAs soon as she tried on a Fresh Day® lens, she gave a few uncomfortable blinks but almost instantly a smile crept across her face and she has been wearing Fresh Day® lenses ever since.

This kind of response has kept this lens as a mainstay in our practice. Our patients have been very happy with the lens and have even told others about 'these lenses from Europe' and how great they are."

Vincente Calderon, OD
Icare & EYEwear, a Vision Source® practice in Bronx, N.Y.

  Words from our Vendors

In this section, you will find the latest offers and promotions from Vision Source® vendors. For more details, log in at visionsource.com and view the vendor book.

Start the Year With Savings from CooperVision

Click image to access the rebate info.

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71 lbs Offers Strategies to Reduce Shipping Costs

Click image to view in full size.

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ADP Can Help You Keep Up with Regulatory Changes on Employee Health Care

Did you know that the U.S. Department of Labor required that employers notify employees of coverage options available through the Health Insurance Marketplace (the Exchange) by Oct. 1, 2013. Did you also know that the Internal Revenue Services updated Forms 1094-C, 1095-C and other forms required by the Affordable Care Act to report health insurance coverage offered under employer-sponsored plans? If you want to learn more about these updates or how ADP® can help you stay up to speed with regulatory changes, contact Noel Collier at 832-964-5984 or [email protected].

  Around Vision Source®


  Practice Development


trustedcolleague

Vision Source® Takes the Guesswork Out Of Running A Second Practice

This is the 16th installment in our Trusted Colleagues series—profiles of high-performing offices that exemplify the best practices of Vision Source® membership—networking with colleagues at local meetings and The Exchange®, engaging with elite vendors and delivering the gold standard of patient care.

In the Vision Source® spirit of collegiality, these members have also agreed to answer any questions you may have about their experience and included their email addresses.

Our Trusted Colleague for this edition is Stephen Planchet, OD, with offices in Pleasanton and Pearsall, Texas, who describes how Vision Source® helps him manage two practices more efficiently. Click here to read the story.

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Trusted Colleague Profiles Available on Women In Optometry Website

Vision Source® is a sponsor of Women In Optometry® magazine, and several of our Trusted Colleague series about high-performing practices appear in print issues of Women In Optometry as well as on the website.

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Read Vision Source® OD and The Insider Online

The digital editions of the 4Q issue of Vision Source® OD and The Insider are available online.


  Vision Source® Member News

Vision Source® Recognized in Most Influential Women in Optical Report

Several Vision Source® members received recognition as the Most Influential Women in Optical, published on Dec.15 in Vision Monday. April Jasper, OD, FAAO, of West Palm Beach, Fla., who was recently appointed as the Benedict Professor at University of Houston College of Optometry, was honored in the Executive Suite. Katie Gilbert Spear, OD, MPH, of Pensacola, Fla.; Lauren Joy Stone, OD, of Newport, Tenn., who is also a Captain in the Tennessee Air National Guard; and Gina Wesley, OD, MS, FAAO, of Medina, Minn., were recognized as Rising Stars. Heather Suggitt, Vision Source® social media and public relations manager, was also named a Rising Star.

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