ASRS and JCAHPO Partner to Offer Scribe Certification
ASRS and JCAHPO Partner to Offer Scribe Certification
ASRS and the Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology (JCAHPO) have formed an alliance to offer ASRS members JCAHPO's online Ophthalmic Scribe Certification (OSC) at a reduced application fee for their scribe staff.
Medicare currently allows ophthalmic scribes who have been certified by a third-party organization to perform computerized physician order entry duties for demonstrating Meaningful Use (MU). Having an ASRS/JCAHPO-certified scribe on your staff will enhance your office efficiency and give you a unique resource for meeting Medicare's MU requirements.
Obtaining Ophthalmic Scribe Certification
The new OSC certification meets the CMS Rule with its 125-item Ophthalmic Scribe Certification examination, designed to test knowledge of creating and maintaining patient medical records and orders under the supervision of an ophthalmologist. The open-book exam content covers history taking, ophthalmic patient services and education, ophthalmic terminology, medical ethics and legal issues, and medical notes/records.
"ASRS is a JCAHPO member, and this is one additional benefit we are bringing to our membership by working with them," says ASRS President Tarek S. Hassan, MD. "ASRS and JCAHPO have an excellent collaborative relationship in training our clinical staff through continuing education programs."
Ophthalmic scribes employed by an ASRS member may purchase the online OSC examination at the affordable rate of $40, compared to the non-member or non-certified rate of $60. Upon successful completion, scribes are certified for three years.
*Certified members are those who have met the certification criteria from JCAHPO in one or more of the following:
- COA -- Certified Ophthalmic Assistant
- COT -- Certified Ophthalmic Technician
- COMT -- Certified Ophthalmic Medical Technologist
- CCOA -- Corporate Certified Ophthalmic Assistant
- ROUB -- Registered Ophthalmic Ultrasound Biometrist
- CDOS -- Certified Diagnostic Ophthalmic Sonographer
- OSA -- Ophthalmic Surgical Assistant
To register for the ophthalmic scribe certification examination, go to www.eyecarece.org. Enter JCEX1000 in the search bar at the top of the page and log on to your JCAHPO account. If you do not have a JCAHPO account, click "Log on" or "My Courses," then click "Create a new account" and follow the prompts.
If you are JCAHPO certified or sponsored by an ASRS member, call JCAHPO at 1-800-284-3937 to have those designations added to your account to receive the discounted rate