Your opinion and 10 minutes could win you an Apple iPod! Simply complete the second annual OfficeMate Software Solutions Report Card Survey, and you will be entered to win a 30 GB Apple iPod! Please take 10 minutes to tell us how we are doing in the areas of our software products, support, sales, training, and documentation; what we are doing well; and what we need to improve. Your input is valuable to us, and we take our survey results seriously.

Click here to take the Report Card Survey.

Rules and Conditions
Survey entries must be received no later than 11:59 pm (PST), February 15, 2007. Limit: one entry per licensed office. OfficeMate Software Solutions reserves the right to substitute the prize for a prize of equal or greater value if the announced prize becomes unavailable.

My best wishes for a happy and healthy 2007 and a prosperous year for your eyecare business!

We all make New Year's resolutions and typically, within a short period of time, we either break those resolutions or forget the ones we made. Our OfficeMate leadership team of 35 key staff members met in Irvine in late November for what we called the “Team ONE ” planning session. Individually and as department teams, we developed new initiatives (or New Year's resolutions) to enhance all aspects of helping you successfully manage your practice. We are fully committed to meeting and exceeding, and not forgetting, the objectives we outlined in November.

As outcomes of the Team ONE meeting, you can expect to see enhanced levels of customer service, more OfficeMate and ExamWRITER training options, and significant software enhancements to OfficeMate and ExamWRITER. We'll be introducing our multilocation version of OfficeMate called OfficeMate Enterprise. If you have two or more offices, you'll now have the option of housing your patient data on a centralized SQL database. If you want to run OfficeMate and ExamWRITER over the Internet using terminal services or Citrix, you'll be able to do that, too!

OfficeMate is making a very substantial investment in new voice-over-IP telephone technology and customer relationship management system to integrate our entire nationwide team of over 80 staff members. OfficeMate and ExamWRITER client service hours will be extended in the first quarter. We'll be announcing new onsite training options and national and regional user group meetings hosted by two of the eyecare industry's most well-recognized educational consultants. Keep checking our Web site, www.officemate.net , for more details!

Now, it's time for our second annual OfficeMate Report Card Survey. As always, I encourage you to give our team feedback on what you see as our successes and our areas for improvement. We all take your input and use it as guidelines for future decisions. We fully understand our success is predicated on providing you with products, services, and tools to successfully manage your eyecare business.

The OfficeMate Report Card Survey is designed to minimize the time it takes to complete the survey. Please take about 10 minutes to give us your input. Your opinions may directly influence many decisions we'll be making in 2007—and you may win yourself an Apple iPod!

Click here to complete the OfficeMate Report Card Survey and enter to win an Apple iPod.

Once again, I wish you and your staff a very happy and healthy New Year! As I always note, please e-mail me personally at any time you have input that can positively impact our business. Your satisfaction remains our top priority and a key driver to our success at OfficeMate Software Solutions.

Kind personal regards,

C. Edward Buffington
President & COO

To transfer a credit balance for one family member to the balance owed for another family member, follow the instructions below:

1. Open the Receipts & Adjustments window and search for and select the patient with the unapplied amount.
2. Ensure that the All With Same Guarantor check box is selected.
3. Click History.
4. Select the unapplied amount and apply it to the appropriate line item.

Note: You can only transfer credits from one family member to another linked family member. If you want to transfer credits between patients who are not linked family members, either link the patients or simply delete the overpayment from the patient currently holding the credit and apply an additional payment equal to the amount of the credit to the patient to which you want to transfer the credit.

For more information on this topic, see the "To pay open items with credit amounts" topic in the OfficeMate User's Guide and F1 online help.

This tip appears in our online Knowledge Base. For more tips like this, visit our Web site, www.officemate.net, click Support, select your product, and click Knowledge Base.

During the past year the Documentation team at OfficeMate Software Solutions has worked hard to provide you with all the information you need to use OfficeMate and ExamWRITER in your practices. We want you to be able to get answers to your questions any time you need them—whether that's at 8:00 a.m. on Monday morning or 10:00 p.m. on Saturday night. In 2006, we expanded our online knowledge base at http://www.officemate.net/omkb/ to include over 700 articles that you can access any time of the day or night from your computer! We also updated all of our OfficeMate and ExamWRITER user's guides and online help, created a new handbook for those of you using the new OfficeMate VSP Interface, created a new user's guide for those of you that interface equipment with ExamWRITER, and created all new documentation for our newest product, iPoint VTO!

In 2007, we will still be here answering your Knowledge Base FAQs, posting the latest updated guides on our Web site, and keeping you up to date with the happenings at our office and with our products. So, don't forget to bookmark our Web site, www.officemate.net, and our Knowledge Base, and let us know if there's any way we can improve our product's usage instructions. As we did in 2006, we'll be using our skills in 2007 to better serve you and support your practices!

Carrie Damschroder
Director of Documentation

DataHEALTH recently was awarded the HIPAA Security Business Associate Accreditation from URAC, a Washington, DC-based health care accrediting organization that establishes quality standards for the health care industry. URAC's HIPAA Security accreditation programs outline a framework of best practices that describe the operational policies and procedures necessary for an effective compliance program.

DataHEALTH should be commended for meeting strict quality standards, said Charles Stellar, URAC Board Chair. It is critically important for organizations serving the healthcare industry to make a commitment to quality and accountability. URAC accreditation is a demonstration of that commitment.

OfficeMate iBackup powered by DataHEALTH is a secure, automatic, online data backup solution that eliminates the following risks:

• Loss of manual backups
• Faulty tapes or drives
• Improper tape storage
• Human errors
• Fire and storm damage

iBackup is easy—all you need is an Internet connection and a few minutes to set up the backup parameters. You can rest assured that your files are verified to be valid backups and that they are being securely transmitted and stored in a safe location. And if you need to restore data, the process to recover your data is simple and proven to work. Simply click a button and your data is back in the same format that you stored it!

More than just peace-of-mind, iBackup powered by DataHEALTH offers you a fully automated process, instant notification of your backup status, speed, reliability, HIPAA compliance, and pricing at a great value at about a $1 a day.  For more information on iBackup, go to http://www.officemate.net/officemate_va_DataHEALTH.aspx or call OfficeMate at 1.800.269.3666, ext. 5004 .

David Markle
Vice President of Technology Integrated Practice

OSSU has trained a record number of clients over the last few months. This record-breaking enrollment in training classes is due in large part to the renewed value you have placed on training as an important part of running an efficient practice.

To help your staff become proficient with your office management and EMR software, we host live Web-based classes, and we also have prerecorded classes and short how-to modules that are accessible 24/7/365 through our Web site. We encourage your office to participate in our training courses, so that your staff members can continue to grow in their knowledge of every aspect of OfficeMate and ExamWRITER and how it will best be put to use in your practice. Participating in training will empower your employees and help your practice run smoothly.

We look forward to serving your training needs.

Marsha Vaughn
Director of OSSU

The American Academy of Optometry is one of the leading professional organizations in optometry. At a recent AAO meeting in Denver, OfficeMate Software Solutions held a raffle for a new laptop computer. The OfficeMate booth was overwhelmed by eyecare professionals who had questions or wanted to get a hands-on demonstration of our software. With four workstations running nonstop for the duration of the exhibit hours, the booth was always full. Doctors who came to just enter the raffle had to admit that there was something special going on at the OfficeMate booth.

After the show closed, we held a drawing, pulling one winner from the hundreds of entries, and Dr. Karen Rule was the lucky doctor. Dr. Rule is the daughter of Dr. David and Linda Rule of Shillington Eye Associates. Although we've worked with the Rules for years, we had no idea that their daughter was a recent graduate and had joined the practice.

Dr. Rule was ecstatic when we called her with the news. A new Dell laptop was delivered to her just in time for the new year. Congratulations, Dr. Rule!

Mark Bruskin
Sr. Vice President of Sales

There are seven new or revised ICD-9.CM codes and one new CPT code that are applicable to the optometric practice in 2007. Remember, the OfficeMate Suite does not automatically update codes because not all of them are applicable to every practice. Use the following list as your guide for entering the new codes into OfficeMate or ExamWRITER.

CPT code effective January 1, 2007

• 92025 Computerized corneal topography, unilateral or bilateral, with interpretation and report

ICD-9.CM codes effective October 1, 2007
New

• 377.43 Optic nerve hypoplasia
• 379.60 Inflammation (infection) of postprocedural bleb, unspecified
• 379.61 Inflammation (infection) of postprocedural bleb, stage 1
• 379.62 Inflammation (infection) of postprocedural bleb, stage 2
• 379.63 Inflammation (infection) of postprocedural bleb, stage 3

Revised

• 360.0 Purulent endophthalmitis, excluding bleb-associated endophthalmitis (379.63)
• 360.1 Other endophthalmitis, excluding bleb-associated endophthalmitis (379.63)

There are no changes to HCPCS codes for 2007.

This information is courtesy of the American Optometric Association. For more information, go to www.aoa.org.

Dr. Ian Lane
Vice President of Professional Services

As OfficeMate's client base continues to grow, so grows the need for quality customer support and the need for qualified, well-trained support representatives. We have been busy interviewing, hiring, and training new Client Services and Training representatives. Our efforts will dramatically improve the support levels at OfficeMate Software Solutions and reduce call wait times. During the mass release of our current upgrade and allocation of our resources to train new staff, our call volume has increased significantly.

We highly encourage that you use the resources readily available to you, including the user's guides, F1 online help, the online Knowledge Base, iTrain videos, and OSSU courses to find answers to your questions before calling our support line. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this busy time.

In order to increase our level of support, we have established an aggressive list of goals for ourselves. Our New Year's resolution includes the following objectives:

• Expand our phone system to our locations in Ohio, Illinois, and New Orleans
• Decrease call wait time with the addition of new staff
• Provide you—our valued clients—with more training options to help make completing the required training more convenient
• Streamline processes and procedures that will raise the quality and efficiency of all responses to support requests 

Happy New Year to you and your staff from the Client Services department!

Violet Baker
Sr. Director of Client Services

Have you ever had just a quick question about your OfficeMate or ExamWRITER software or needed support after hours or on the weekend?

Help is available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week through the OfficeMate Software Solutions' online Knowledge Base. The Knowledge Base has over 700 articles that cover a variety of products, including OfficeMate, ExamWRITER, ReportWRITER, iPoint VTO, and such legacy products as RLISYS and OfficeMate DOS. These articles are constantly being reviewed and revised to provide you with consistent, accurate, and up-to-date information about your OfficeMate Software Solutions program.

Not only is the Knowledge Base available to you 24/7, but it's easy to use, too. You can browse for help by topic or you can search for an answer using keywords. If you are unable to find the answer to your question, you can submit your question to us, and we will respond to you within the next two business days. We may even post the answer to your question on the Knowledge Base for the benefit of other users.

To access the Knowledge Base, go to the OfficeMate Software Solutions Web site, www.officemate.net and hold your cursor over Support, then over your product, and then click Knowledge Base. You can also access the Knowledge Base directly at http://www.officemate.net/omkb/ .

Search Tips
To improve your search results, keep the following guidelines in mind:

• Use keywords rather than a complete sentence.
• Enter the root form of your action (e.g., credit rather than crediting; delete rather than deleting).
• Try using synonyms (e.g., doctor, provider; office, practice; remove, delete).

If you aren't able to find the answer to your question, click the Ask a Question! tab, and we'll get back to you.

Michael Opsteegh
Sr. Technical Writer

Your Annual Software Maintenance Agreement (ASMA) is your guarantee that your office will receive the support and software updates you need to keep your practice running smoothly. The ASMA includes an annual renewal of all software programs licensed, all software upgrades, 24/7/365 access to online, prerecorded iTrain training and demonstrations, and toll-free help desk services for OfficeMate Suite products.

If you would like to renew your ASMA or have questions regarding the ASMA policy, please call 800.269.3666 and select option 2, or send an e-mail to renewals@officemate.net.

Karen M. Kingsbury
Director of Business Renewals

Years ago, when computers were introduced into the business environment, users interacted with terminals that relied on central mainframes and minicomputer systems to perform all of the computing and store data. Today with the dawn of powerful and inexpensive personal computers, the trend is to distribute and run applications on the individual PC. But with the advent of the Internet, centralized computing is coming round again. It may be called Thin-Client or ASP, but it's an old idea. Even the eyecare software market is beginning to see products using this concept. Although this approach is not new and it has some advantages, it also poses some serious questions. Concerns about patient data security, HIPAA regulations, performance, and reliability all need to be addressed. How many offices would be willing to place all of their patient data and records off-site? As offices move to paperless environments, how will large scanned files and digital images be moved quickly and efficiently to a remote server? Fortunately, OfficeMate can be used in both a Client-Server environment or a Thin-Client environment. OfficeMate products can be delivered very successfully using Citrix or Terminal Services. Many OfficeMate clients have been doing just that for many years. To learn more about this type of solution, look for our White Paper on ‘Delivering OfficeMate Using a Thin-Client Solution' on our Web site early next year.

Rob Adams
Vice President of Development

In our continuing effort to streamline our processes and draw upon the expertise of the Client Services teams in all of the OSS locations across the country, we are implementing changes to our existing telephone system. We have updated the greeting that you hear when you call us to incorporate options to reach the Client Services teams that are providing legacy support for Delta Add-Power and COS software in addition to the existing options to reach the OfficeMate and ExamWRITER Client Services team.

As we move forward, we will be implementing changes to enable the phone system to open earlier in the morning to accommodate callers from the Eastern and Central time zones. In addition, there will be an option to reach the team providing legacy support for the RLISYS software. We anticipate those changes to be in effect by the end of January 2007.

Additional options and changes to existing options will be implemented in the middle of January. Please listen carefully, as the options will change.

Carol Wilcox
Vice President of Administration & Operations

Because spam filters are all different, legitimate e-mail messages can sometimes be filtered as junk mail. We highly suggest that you add the OfficeMate Software Solutions domain (officemate.net) to your safe senders list in your e-mail program. Adding us to your safe senders list will ensure that our e-mail messages and newsletters successfully arrive in your Inbox.

If you use Microsoft Outlook 2000 or higher, follow the instructions below to add the OfficeMate domain name to your safe senders list:

1. Open an e-mail communication from OfficeMate Software Solutions.
2. Click the Actions menu option at the top of the window.
3. Select Junk E-mail.
4. Select Add Senders Domain to Safe Senders List.
5. Click OK after the sender is added to your safe list.

If you use another e-mail program, look in their Help program to find instructions on how to add the OfficeMate domain name to your safe senders list.