Caroline E. Fife, MD, FAAFP, CWS, FUHM

The United States’ healthcare “fee for service” payment system is rapidly transitioning away from one based on volume to one that is determined by “value” and links costs to improved patient outcomes. The problem with the current system is...

The United States’ healthcare...

12/15/2015

Today's Wound Clinic

Letter from the Editor

From the Editor: Wound Care Coverage Playbook

05/11/2011

Caroline E. Fife , MD, FAAFP, CWS, FUHM;

I am writing this at the end of a grueling day in clinic. I stayed late to see a woman with cancer. I had to keep my staff overtime, and for that I will catch a lot of grief from administration tomorrow. No matter how idealistic our...

I am writing this at the end...

05/11/2011

Today's Wound Clinic

PAD

Fighting Peripheral Arterial Disease One Leg at a Time

07/06/2020

Caroline E. Fife , MD, FAAFP, CWS, FUHM;

To prevent amputation by screening for and treating peripheral arterial disease, this author notes CMS quality measures can aid clinicians in doing the right thing.

To prevent amputation by...

07/06/2020

Today's Wound Clinic

From the Editor

The 'Potemkin Village' That is Wound Care

12/10/2018

Caroline E. Fife , MD, FAAFP, CWS, FUHM;

In 1787, Catherine II (also known as Catherine the Great), a Russian Tsarina, set out on a tour of Crimea, an area Russia had annexed from the Ottoman Empire. The area had been devastated by the Crimean War and was a mess. Grigory Potemkin,...

In 1787, Catherine II (also...

12/10/2018

Today's Wound Clinic

From the Editor

The Delay of ICD-10-CM

04/10/2014

Caroline E. Fife , MD, FAAFP, CWS, FUHM;

My father used to joke that his definition of “mixed emotions” was seeing your mother-in-law drive off a cliff in your new car. I had mixed emotions on March 31, when the US Senate approved a bill to delay national adoption of ICD-10-CM...

My father used to joke that...

04/10/2014

Today's Wound Clinic

Figure 1: Pre-debridement. Exposed tibialis anterior with concerns for pyoderma gangrenosum. (photo courtesy of Efthymios Gkotsoulias, DPM).

Diabetic Foot Ulcers

All Multidisciplinary Teams, All the Time: Treat the Patient and Not the Wound

04/01/2021

Caroline E. Fife , MD, FAAFP, CWS, FUHM;

David Kuten , MD;

Efthymios Gkotsoulias , DPM;

Given that diabetes affects so many organs in the body, team-based care is particularly crucial for patients with diabetic foot ulcers. This author details how a multidisciplinary approach can save lives and limbs.

Given that diabetes affects so...

04/01/2021

Today's Wound Clinic

Signs of an Impending Audit: Are You Waving Red Flags?

08/14/2012

Caroline E. Fife , MD, FAAFP, CWS, FUHM;

Dot Weir , RN, CWON, CWS;

Editor’s note: The introduction to this article was contributed by Des Bell, DPM, CWS. For information on further internal audit topics and the documentation found during an audit, see “Business Briefs” on page 6. The “business of...

Editor’s note: The introduction...

08/14/2012

Today's Wound Clinic

Reader Reports

Reader Survey: Monitoring the Changing Wound Care Clinic

08/05/2011

Dot Weir , RN, CWON, CWS;

Caroline E. Fife , MD, FAAFP, CWS, FUHM;

“If you don’t like something change it; if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it.” -Mary Engelbreit Like death and taxes, changes in the way that an outpatient wound clinic codes and charges are an inevitable and...

“If you don’t like something...

08/05/2011

Today's Wound Clinic