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Bp Learning takes flight for Bp Premier

For Australian users of Bp Premier

The first group training session for Bp Premier for 2018 will be run in Brisbane (at Best Practice Software’s spacious and modern new training room) from Tuesday 27th February and is almost sold out!

Our Training team then move onto Melbourne, with sessions covering clinical, management and financial aspects of Bp Premier from 13th to 15th March. If you are new to Bp Premier or need a refresher, please contact our Training Team on 1300 40 1111 for more information. Or to register simply visit Bpclassroom.

Don’t forget, we also offer remote training which can be completely customised to your specific needs, and can be scheduled in at your convenience.  It’s an easy and cost effective way for any size group at your Practice to receive dedicated training.

February marks the first of our “trending topic” sessions for our customers.  These are compiled from the calls received by our Support Team - the most frequent enquiries to our Support Team will form the basis of a free session that you and your team can access online.  The first one is of great interest to all of us doing business in the digital world – data maintenance and disaster recovery. Two free sessions will be held on Wednesday 21st February.  To find out more information, or to register your spot, please click here.

Pictured left to right: Bp Learning team members: Naomi Henderson, Jay Rose, Mark Hodgkinson, Suzi Eley and Shar Trewben

 

Major vulnerability threatens most modern computer processors

US-CERT a US government cybersecurity watchdog, has issued a notification advising of a new set of vulnerabilities that affect modern computer processors. The security vulnerabilities known as Meltdown and Spectre could allow an attacker to obtain access to sensitive information.

This has the potential to affect not only computers and phones, but any device that uses a CPU made in the last two decades.

What you can do to help prevent this attack and others like it…
• Ensure all of your devices have the latest security patches applied.
• If you are running Windows 7, 8 or 10 and have the Windows Automatic Updates enabled.
• For other devices check with your vendor for patch availability.
Note: There has been speculation that the deployment of patches has impacted performance and caused slowdowns. Vendors have indicated that in most cases they have seen negligible impact, however performance can vary.

And as always:
• Be wary of unsolicited emails and do not open suspicious attachments.
• Ensure you have an Anti-virus software installed and it is up-to-date.
• Have an anti-virus program that can scan files before they are downloaded, block secret installations and look for malware that may already be on a computer.
• Note that Windows Vista has not been supported since 11th April, 2017.

To ensure you have the latest Microsoft security updates, open up your Computer Settings, go to Windows Security and Update and check that you are up to date.  Alternatively, you can contact your IT provider to ensure you are running the latest patches/updates for your computer systems, software and devices.

Scouts again grateful to Best Practice Software

Australian Scouts were once again grateful to Best Practice Software for the use of our Bp Premier medical records, waiting room and billing package during the recent 17th Australian Venture (AV2018) at Joyner on Brisbane’s northside.

“Best Practice makes providing healthcare for the kids and adults so much simpler,” said Dr Michael Rice, GP and Scouts member in Beaudesert, Queensland. “Whether at events of 1000 live AV2018, or 12,000 like national Jamborees, we can manage waiting patients, comprehensive record-keeping, and Medicare billing where appropriate.”

Best Practice Software has partnered with Scouts to access Bp Premier at events for over a decade. “We can have 1000 or 10,000 youth and adults attending,” Dr Rice said. “We are able to load up our attendance database for each event, saving time and improving accuracy.”

These events run for up to a fortnight, with the attendees and most Leader volunteers arriving within the space of a few hours and little time to familiarise with systems.

“Best Practice is easy to learn and very intuitive,” said CN Kelly Jenkins, a Clinical Nurse at PA Hospital Emergency Department and Venturer Scout Leader at Wishart-Chester Scout Group in Toohey Forest District. “We have a range of volunteers including doctors, nurses, various health science students and administrators, and whether or not they have used electronic clinical records in the past, the learn Best Practice so quickly that we are productive from day one.”

“Whether set up with a site certificate for electronic billing, online claiming via PRODA or physical lodgement of claim forms, Best Practice Software has allowed for patients, seen by doctors, to claim Medicare rebates which are typically donated back to Scouts. That offsets our costs substantially.”

Scouts aged 11-15 and Venturer Scouts aged 15-18 attend these National events every January, along with adult Rover Scouts and qualified Leaders in support roles. “Far from home, they deliver a range of presentations from homesickness, dehydration and gastro to ‘jamboritis fantastica’ which is the exhaustion from having too much fun for 2 weeks straight,” Dr Rice said. “We manage a lot of cases that parents would manage on the couch at home, and Best Practice helps us keep good records,” he said.“We’re so pleased with the product and grateful for the access that we are thinking of ways to make use of Best Practice at other major annual events like Agoonoree (where Scouts support guests with disabilities) and Cuboree (for 8-10 year-olds),” Kelly said. “We look forward to continuing the good relationship.”

Pictured left to right: CN Kelly Martin, Dr Michael Rice, RN Kym Griffin, Practice Manager Kathryn Robinson

 

More enhancements for Bp Allied

Great news for allied health professionals!

Since Bp Allied’s Version 5 was released in August 2017, users have enjoyed a number of important upgrades.

Major highlights with that release include improvements to the Data Base, MP settings, permissions, appointment book, client details, reminders and invoices functions.

If you haven’t yet explored all of the great functionality released with Bp Allied Version 5 during 2017 find out more here.

Bp VIP.net developments

The new release of Bp VIP.net is in its final phase of development and then testing.

There will be some major improvements to our popular specialist software, including financial systems, confidential medical notes and much more. 

More news as it comes to hand.

DOB on Bp Premier scripts

For Australian users of Bp Premier

All Australian Medical Practitioners would be familiar with recent changes to the availability of over-the-counter codeine-containing medicines. 

The Tasmanian Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has also released additional requirements in relation to prescriptions for Schedule 8 medicines.  From 1st February, all prescriptions for these preparations will require the patient’s DOB to be printed on the script. 

Users of Bp Premier are advised that the Patient’s DOB is already clearly printed on these scripts and has been for many years.

Has your IT infrastructure reached its end date?

Advice for all our software users in all locations

Microsoft has recently discontinued extended support for various older versions of their Windows and SQL platforms. These include the following versions:
• Windows XP
• Windows 2003 (including SBS versions)
• Windows Vista
• SQL Server 2005 (all variants)

If you are currently using one of these retiring platforms, Bp strongly recommends that you consult your IT provider to consider upgrading.

We can only effectively support versions which are currently supported by Microsoft. Practices should be aware of the risks associated with using older versions. Failing to upgrade can put your practice at a higher risk of potentially exposing your system to cyber-attacks.

For more information about the Microsoft lifecycle and policies click here.

Please note – Bp Premier Lava and its service packs are the last versions of Bp Premier that will support these Operating Systems and versions of SQL

Don’t leave your Practice open to attack

Over the years our Software Support team have heard of the occasional attack on Practice networks and systems which probably could have been avoided.

Sometimes, the attack is through a third party application and sometimes direct through your network firewall through user/server password settings.

We always recommend that our users revisit firewall security and password settings, and think about regular changes to these – particularly from the default program password to something more appropriate and unique to your Practice.  We also recommend considering which applications on your PC you no longer require, and consider whether having these programs on your desktop or server might make your Practice vulnerable to external attack.

By having a regular audit on your Practice computer security settings, you could save yourself and your Practice time and money.

 

We’re only a phone call away

When you need to contact us, there’s only one number to remember (or two if you do business in Australia and New Zealand):

AUSTRALIA:        1300 40 1111
NEW ZEALAND:  0800 40 1111

Call us whether you have a Support, Training, Product or Sales enquiry.  Follow the prompts and you’ll reach one of our friendly, helpful Bp team members. 

Don’t forget – you can find answers to most frequently asked questions about our products and features, as well as our user training and knowledge base options. at www.bpsoftware.net.

Bp Support team remote assistance

To help investigate Support enquiries, we may from time to time ask for remote access to your workstation or server to help us resolve your enquiry in a timely manner. Generally, this would only be used for read-only access.

If you already have TeamViewer installed:
• Please ensure the version you have access to is Version 12
• Have the password handy (if your IT has set this up they may have set a password. In this case you would need to speak to them to obtain the password if it is not visible when running the application)

If you currently do not have TeamViewer or are using a version that is not compatible you can use the free Version 12 QuickSupport utility from TeamViewer.  You can find instructions on how to download and run TeamViewer 12 QuickSupport here…

If you have a different version of TeamViewer installed, you may have to shut it down to enable the Version 12 QuickSupport to run.

Team Bp is constantly looking at ways to improve our support services to you and we are investigating a number of long term remote access solutions but, in the meantime, Version 12 QuickSupport is a great solution that won’t cost a cent and doesn’t require installation.

If you need help with this or any other matter, please call our Support Team on 1300 40 1111 in Australia or 0800 40 1111 in New Zealand or simply email us on support@bpsoftware.net

AutoMed Systems a revolution in reception management

AutoMed Systems take the patient from phone and online appointments to checking-in, electronic new patient registrations and existing patient updates, payments with real-time Medicare claims and follow up appointments with printed appointment cards and MMS confirmations.

This full circle service leads to improved patient experience, decreased staff stress and decreased operational costs, ultimately improving practice viability.

With AutoMed Online Appointments you can create unlimited appointment types with customised duration, nurse allocation, questions and tailored messages. The patient does not register with a 3rd party, there is no duplication of files and no advertising - just the message that your practice wants to send.

AutoMed System’s Caller ID and Appointment Book Interface allows for educational and promotional opportunities at one fixed low cost. Their MediCare certified payment system decreases staff time and seamlessly processes all payments leading to decreased bad debts. Being Australian owned, they respond to needs quickly - delivering quality, efficiency, reliability and cost savings.

For more details visit their website https://automedsystems.com.au/start-free-trial/ and download the free one month trial (with no lock-in contracts). And they invite you to phone them on 03 9931 1564 to discuss how they can tailor a service to suit your specific needs.