Skill Sharpeners

Exercise 1: Post Charges and Payments to an Account Outside of Checkout

Mary Doe is not scheduled for an appointment but comes into your office to purchase a whitening kit. How do you charge her for the kit?

To post a charge on a patient account:

On the main menu, click the Open Patient Chart button. The OrthoTrac Patient Lookup window is displayed.
Type Doe and press Enter.
Verify that the correct patient is selected and click OK. The patient chart is displayed.
Click the Financial Functions button. The Financial Functions—Charges and Payments window is displayed.
In the Procedures section, type the procedure code for the whitening kit, or click Enter Code or Click Here for List to display the Procedures window, and select the code from the list.
To add a comment about a procedure, type the comment on the line below the procedure and press Enter. A green checkmark is displayed in the Patient field to indicate that the comment will be displayed on the patient ledger.
Press Tab or Enter to move to the Payments section and select a payment type from the list. Press Tab.
Type a payment reference number, if necessary, and press Tab. The payment amount is populated automatically. Press Tab until the Post Transactions button is highlighted.
Click the Post Transactions button or press Enter.
Click Close or press Enter when the Close button is selected.

Exercise 2: Process Mailed-In Payments

After opening the day’s mail, you have a stack of checks that need to be posted. How can you post the payments quickly and efficiently?

To post payments your office receives in the mail:

In any financial functions window, press Ctrl + O. The OrthoTrac Patient Lookup window is displayed.
Select the name of the patient whose payment you want to post and click OK.
If the patient name is not on the check, search for the responsible party by clicking the Responsible button. Select the responsible party and click OK. The Financial Functions—Charges and Payments window is displayed.
Press Ctrl + P to move the cursor to the Payments section.
Select Mail-in Ck from the drop-down payments list and press Enter.
Type the reference number and press Enter.
Enter the payment amount and press Enter until the Post Transactions button is selected and press Enter or Ctrl + S to save the transaction.
Press Ctrl + O. The OrthoTrac Patient Lookup window is displayed. Select the name of the next patient and repeat the above steps.

Exercise 3: Process a Bulk Insurance Check

You have received a reimbursement check from Doe Brothers Insurance that contains payments for several patient claims. How do you post the payments accurately, ensuring that the insurance check is dispersed properly?

To post a bulk check:

Click the Insurance Functions button on the main menu. The Insurance Functions menu is displayed. Select Post Bulk Payment. The OrthoTrac Carrier Lookup window is displayed.
Select the insurance company that sent you the check and click OK. The Post Bulk Payment window is displayed.
In the Reference field, type the reference number from the check. Press Enter.
In the Check Amount field, type the amount of the check. Press Enter. The Paid column for the first patient in the grid is selected, and the Ins Cur and Pat Cur balance is displayed.
If the amount displayed matches the amount on the EOB for that patient, press Enter. If the EOB lists a different amount, type the new amount and press Enter. A dialog box containing Patient and Insurance options is displayed.
Press Enter or click Apply to apply the check amount to the account. To apply the payment to the other account balance, select the account and click Apply. A checkmark is displayed next to the balance paid.
Select the next patient on the list and repeat the above steps.
When all payments have been posted and the Unallocated amount is $0.00, click OK.
Click Print to print a report.

Exercise 4: Make a Charge Adjustment

You have posted a charge for a retainer repair to the wrong patient’s account. How do you remove the charge?

To make a charge adjustment:

Open the chart for the patient whom you charged in error and click the Financial Functions button. The Financial Functions—Charges and Payments window is displayed.
Click the Adjustments button. The Financial Functions—Adjustments window is displayed.
Click Charge Adjustment. The charges available for adjustment are displayed in the center of the Financial Functions—Adjustments window.
Select the charge you want to adjust.
Click Posted in Error. The Posted in Error window is displayed, showing a description of the procedure and all accounts affected by the adjustment.
Click OK to post the adjustment and update all accounts indicated in the window.
Click the Close button to return to the patient chart.
Click the Patient Lookup button and select the patient for whom you want to post the charge.
In the patient chart, click the Financial Functions button and post the charge to the account. Add a comment indicating the appropriate charge date, if necessary.

Exercise 5: Make a Payment Adjustment

You have posted a payment to John Doe’s account, but there are two patients named John Doe in your office, and you posted the payment to the wrong account. How do you remove the payment so you can credit the correct account?

To make a payment adjustment:

Open the chart for the patient whom you credited mistakenly and click the Financial Functions button. The Financial Functions—Charges and Payments window is displayed.
Click the Adjustments button. The Financial Functions—Adjustments window is displayed.
Click Payment Adjustment. The payments available for adjustment are displayed in the center of the Financial Functions—Adjustments window.
Select the payment you want to adjust. A default comment is displayed in the Comment section. Add a comment at the end of this comment, or select the comment and replace it.
Click Posted in Error. The Posted in Error window is displayed, showing a description of the procedure and all accounts affected by the adjustment.
Click OK to post the adjustment and update all accounts indicated on the window.
Click the Close button to return to the patient chart.
Click the Patient Lookup button and select the patient for whom you want to post the payment.

Exercise 6: Make a Discount Adjustment

There are five types of discount adjustments that enable you to give a discount on a contract or a balance to a patient. This example uses the Staff Discount option.

The daughter of a staff member is starting treatment, and your doctor gives a 50% discount for staff members. How do you apply the discount to your co-worker’s account?

To make a discount adjustment:

Set up the contract for treatment as you typically would.
In the Financial Functions—Charges and Payments window, click the Adjustments button. The Financial Functions—Adjustments window is displayed.
Click Discount. The account balance information is displayed in the center of the Financial Functions—Adjustments window.
In the Type of Discount section, select Staff Discount.
In the Account to Adjust box, select whether you want the discount to affect the responsible party balance or the insurance balance.
In the Discount Amt field, type the amount of the discount either as a percentage (10/ or 10%) or a negative dollar amount (-10). The software calculates the effect on the account balances and aging.