An insightful and informative newsletter from the Art of Practice Management. A dental practice management consulting company that focuses on revenue and collection systems, front desk systems and forms, dental insurance processing, medical/dental cross-coding systems and employment-law compliance.

1. 15% OFF
Cross-Walking
Manual
A Guide Through the
Crosswalk of Dental to
Medical Coding
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Has it happened to you yet? If it hasn't, don't think you are in the clear and don't
believe that it couldn't happen to you or your practice. What I am referring to is
ransomware computer viruses. Up until last year, I had been a very busy dental
office manager in my small town of New Bern, NC. In spite of the fact that it is a very
small town practice, the practice was hit by a ransomware attack. Fortunately, the
practice had excellent IT coverage and a great backup system that backs up all files
every two yours. The virus was detected quickly enough that we avoided having to
pay a ransom and our only problem was that we lost some appointment data during
the time period since the last two hour backup. As a result, I became keenly aware
of how devastating these events can be to a dental practice, especially if the
practice doesn't have a good setup to deal with such events. In light of this, I want to
share some information that I received from the company, Carbonite, on dealing
with ransomware attacks.
"Ransomware refers to any malicious computer virus that encrypts your digital files
and allows the sender to demand that you pay a hefty ransom to get them back"1
Oftentimes the sender will request that payment be made through the use of
bitcoins which is a relatively new form of digital currency. Bitcoins are also very
difficult to track.
Carbonite provides five reasons why everyone who uses a computer and stores
data on the computer should be concerned about ransomware and do everything
possible to prevent it.
1. Ransomware attacks are definitely increasing. There was a 113% increase in
attacks in 2015 than any previous year and, on average, were demanding
$300.00 to give the files back.2
2. Don't believe that these attacks only hit certain types of businesses only.
Carbonite referenced an attack on Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital as an
example where they had to pay $17000.00 in bitcoins to regain access to their
IT system.
3. Due to the fact that these cybercriminals are getting more sophisticated, it is
easier for individuals to fall victim to an attack. Most of these attacks occur
when an individual clicks on a link in an email that, when it opens, it launches
the attack. These cybercriminals have bumped up their game and are able to
create emails that look very legit which makes it quite easy for the victim to
not realize it is ransomware until it's too late. In addition, these cybercriminals
have learned to work together. There are sites on the deep Web called
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Marianne Harper
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Ransomware as a Service (ReaS) whereby anyone can launch an attack if
they are willing to share the profits with other criminals. Now that's really
scary.
4. Don't think that if you are a MAC user that you are safe. Experts in this field
believe that the first MAC attack occurred in March of this year.
5. Smartphones and tablets are also not immune to ransomware attacks.
So what can be done to deal with this situation? Preventive measures are a must.
You must have good firewall protection and security software. However, these alone
don't guarantee protection. You must also have a really good backup plan in place,
preferably one that has frequent backups during the day. A good IT team is also a
recommendation.
One last word of advice - always pay attention to who has sent the link before
opening it. If you don't recognize the source or if something looks off, do not open it.
Be very careful!
1 Brunelli, Mark. "Five Reasons Ransomware Remains a Serious Threat". Carbonite.
www.carbonite.com/en/resources/carbonite-blog/five-reasons-ransomware-remains-a-
serious-threat/accessed 4-20-16
2 Brunelli, Mark. "Five Reasons Ransomware Remains a Serious Threat". Carbonite.
www.carbonite.com/en/resources/carbonite-blog/five-reasons-ransomware-remains-a-
serious-threataccessed 4-20-16
The Secret to Placing Locally-Applied Antimicrobials Easily -
Every Time!
Colleen Rutledge, RDH
Traditional gum grafting is a very effective treatment for gingival recession. It usually
involves palatal donor tissue, scalpels, sutures, and post-operative discomfort.
While this traditional grafting is effective, there is a new minimally invasive option for
treating gum recession called the Chao Pinhole® Surgical Technique™.
Dr. John Chao, a practicing California periodontist who invented this scalpel and
suture free approach, gets comparable results to the traditional method by simply
adjusting the existing tissue. During the procedure, a needle is used to make a
small 'pinhole' in the patient's existing gum tissue. Through this pinhole, special
instruments designed by Dr Chao, are used to gently loosen the gum tissue. These
tools help expand and slide the gumline to cover the exposed root structure.
Here's a list of the benefits of the Chao Pinhole® Surgical technique:
 Less discomfort for the patient after treatment
 Faster recovery for the patient than traditional grafting
 No need for uncomfortable sutures
 No need for scalpels or invasive surgical tools
 No need to take donor tissue from the patient's palate
 Excellent, natural-looking, long-lasting results

3. Photo source: https://www.pinholesurgicaltechnique.com/Consumer-site/
There are no long term studies except for Dr. Chao's article which I have listed in
the references. For more info check out the YouTube video demonstration and the
website below.
References:
www.pinholesurgicaltechnique.com/pdf/fulltext.pdf
www.pinholesurgicaltechnique.com
YouTube: What is the Pinhole Surgical Technique® (a SurgicalMaster™
QuickLecture)
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May 15, 2016! Use code APRMEZ in your shopping cart. Please visit
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Dental – Documentation is so very important and must be reported by the dentist
or specialist. Due to the fact that there are several different types of dental exams,
documentation must be in place to give the detailed information about who
performed the exam, the reason for the exam, and any diagnosis that might have
been made.
Medical – There are certain diagnosis codes that may require extension codes (a
seventh character at the end of the code). These extensions give information about
which episode of care applies to the visit. The codes that require this fall in the
series of codes that begin with the letter S and extend to the ones that begin with
the letter Y.
Present – Emails have been sent out notifying all CrossWalking manual
purchasers and Quick Look Up Code List purchasers about the 2016 updates for
those products. These updates can be ordered here: 2016 Code Update
January 1, 2016 - Updated CDT codes. If you haven't already purchased your CDT
manual, please do so ASAP. My recommendation is Practice Booster or Coding
with Confidence. You can also order the 2016 issue. To order "Coding with
Confidence" and/or Practice Booster, download the Coding with Confidence
Manual Order Form.
February 1, 2017 - All physicians and eligible professionals, including dentists, who
treat Medicare beneficiaries and write prescriptions, refer, or order for these patients
must either enroll in the Medicare program or opt out of it. Delaying your decision
can be very problematic.
Time Line
Insurance Alert

4. Blueprints to Exceed Today's Hygiene Standard of Care
Friday, May 6, Woburn, MA
Saturday, May 7, Springfield, MA
Friday, September 16, Rockville, MD
Saturday, September 17, Richmond, VA
Friday, October 21, Syracuse, NY
Saturday, October 22, Albany, NY
Friday, November 4, Atlanta, GA
Saturday, November 5, Braselton, GA
To register: 707-769-8887 or Register online
•April 22, 2016 - San Antonio, TX - Abra-Code-Dabra: Medical Billing Basics for
the Dental Practice - Register
•April 28, 2016 - Webinar - Understanding the Medical Code Sets for Cross
Coding to Medical, Coding Leader, 1:00 PM EST
•July 15, 2016 - Las Vegas, NV - Abra-Code-Dabra: Medical Billing Basics for the
Dental Practice - Register
•September 16, 2016 - Charlotte, NC - Abra-Code-Dabra: Medical Billing Basics
for the Dental Practice - Register
•October 7, 2016 - Chicago, IL - Abra-Code-Dabra: Medical Billing Basics for the
Dental Practice - Register
•November 4, 2016 - Jacksonville, FL - Abra-Code-Dabra: Medical Billing Basics
for the Dental Practice - Register
•March 2017 - Abra-Code-Dabra; Michigan Dental Association
Favorite Quotes:
"Ransomware is more about manipulating vulnerabilities in human psychology than
the adversary's technological sophistication"
~ James Scott
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/ransomware
Tips
I enjoy reading tips from Dr. Zimmerman and also like to pass them on to my
readers. This month's tip came from his December 29, 2015 newsletter. The topic
of his tips in that newsletter deals with what employees need to do to become
"winners". This is the first tip.
1. Regard work as a privilege, not a problem. The negativity that comes from
not doing that can be contagious which can then be costly to a practice.
mailer@infusionmail.com on behalf of Alan Zimmerman [alan@drzimmerman.com],
accessed 4-20-16
Marianne's Seminar/Webinar Schedule for 2016
Colleen's Seminar Schedule for 2016

5. Points of Interest:
Fruit or Vegetable - Which is it?
You may be surprised to find out that what you thought was a fruit is
really a vegetable and vice versa. Here is a breakdown:
Bell peppers - fruit
Avocados - fruit
Tomatoes - fruit, but according to a law they are vegetables
But here are some other produce facts:
Apples are cousins of roses
Tiny carrots aren't baby carrots
Bananas are berries
Blackberries, raspberries and strawberries are not berries
http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/ss/slideshow-fun-facts-fruits-
vegetables?ecd=wnl_spr_041816&ctr=wnl-spr-041816_nsl-ld-stry_title&mb=%4, accessed
4-20-16
Is there someone you think would be interested in this newsletter?
Please feel free to forward this email to them. Thank you!
The Art of Practice Management
2217 Fox Horn Road • New Bern, NC 28562 • Phone: 1-252-637-6259
www.artofpracticemanagement.com • a.p.m.1@suddenlink.net
Perio-Therapeutics & Beyond
724 Fitzwatertown Road • Glenside, PA 19038 • Phone: 267-241-5833
www.perioandbeyond.com • colleen@perioandbeyond.com
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About us | Privacy policy | © Copyright 2016 - Marianne Harper
The contents of this publication reflect the opinion of the authors only. This publication is for informational purposes only.
Any reference to a company or product is done only to provide information about the same and does not reflect any connection between
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