There has been immense improvement throughout our civilization in the past two decades, and as the 21st century progresses, it will become increasingly evident how important these societal changes have become. As our world has experienced a major transformation throughout the past 20 years, technology has become more ubiquitous than ever before all across the globe.
As our world has changed, many industries have had to adapt as well. One of the greatest changes that has occurred to a field has been healthcare. The healthcare industry has been drastically altered by numerous changes in our society, and one of the most important changes has occurred within the physical therapy field. Learning about the changes to PT in 2020 is crucial for your practice.
Changes in the PT Field
During the 21st century, the physical therapy field has experienced a wide variety of change. New technological advances, as well as novel equipment and exercise programs have helped patients to get better care and have ensured that their ailments are more effectively treated.
While many of the changes to the PT field have come in the form of new treatment options, another major change has occurred throughout to regulations. Physical therapy practices now need to fill out progress notes in order to comply with federal regulations. Physical therapy progress notes are extremely important and figuring out how to use them for your PT practice is vital for your business to thrive.
Learning about Progress Notes
There is much that you will need to learn about in order to have a complete understanding of physical therapy progress notes. Writing up physical therapy progress notes is extremely important for all patients, especially those that are on Medicare.
Progress notes are needed for Medicare patients so that the agency can determine the care you are providing is a medical necessity. Medical necessity is determined by Medicare, and the criteria for that entails that the services provided help the patient with their issues or that if the therapy is maintenance therapy, that it is either slowing, maintaining, or preventing further deterioration.
Progress notes need to comply with many requirements in order to ensure that they are adhering to the standards that Medicare has set out. A few of the numerous requirements are that progress notes are filed once every 10 therapy sessions for each patient, the extent of progress for every PT goal is defined, start and ending dates for the reporting period, an objective report of patients’ subjective statements, plans for continuation of treatment, objective quantifying measures (such as functional testing), the signature of the clinician with credentials, and more. Failing to file progress notes can be detrimental to your practice, so it is highly recommended to fill physical therapy progress notes out to the best of your ability.
Final Thoughts
If you want to ensure that your physical therapy practice is up to the highest standards, then you need to utilize physical therapy progress notes. Comprehending how important progress notes are to the success of your practice is imperative.
