About Dr. Fife
Dr. Fife is a world-renowned wound care physician. She is the Director of the Wound Care Center at CHI St. Luke’s The Woodlands Hospital, CMO of Intellicure, Inc., Exec. Director of the US Wound Registry & Editor of Today’s Wound Clinic.
Report Honest Healing Rates
It’s time for Wound Care physicians and providers to stand up for truly honest outcomes and transparent quality reporting. If we don’t we may see our entire profession wiped out. Click here to read more.
Resource Room
Explore Dr. Fife’s ever-growing library of helpful content related to Wound Care and MIPS. From videos to instructional materials, this knowledge base is completely yours to enjoy and use.
Latest Posts
How Wound Care May Change, For Better and Worse, in 2020 | From Today’s Wound Clinic
The field of wound management is in for a lot of big changes in 2020. As with anything in life, some changes are painful, but they could have beneficial aspects for both clinicians and patients.
CMS Report on HBOT Prior Authorization
The ACA – To Be or Not To Be…?
Last week on Dec. 18, 2019, a Fifth Circuit appeals panel upheld Judge O’Connor’s ruling, determining that the individual mandate (to buy insurance) under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional in the absence of a tax penalty. However, the appeals court did not offer a decision as to whether the rest of the ACA remains in force.
Solve One Person’s Problem with Operation Santa
There are, it seems, a few problems that we can actually solve.
What’s the Difference Between Hyperbaric Registries?
We need all the data we can get in the fields of wound care and hyperbaric medicine.
Here’s Some of the Actual Writing on the Wall
Am I the only one who’s worried? (OK, it’s fair to say I’m panicking.)
From Today’s Wound Clinic: The Handwriting on the Wall for Wound Management
Re-printed from Today's Wound Clinic We are at an important crossroads in the field of wound management. From the perspective of new technologies, the future is bright. Unfortunately, the future of the field itself is dismal. Under Medicare’s new Quality Payment...
Our Physician Compare Article is in This Month’s Issue of “Advances in Skin & Wound Care”
More wound relevant quality measures are under consideration by CMS for depiction on Physician Compare in 2020.
UPDATE: Wounds are a SYMPTOM – What’s the Diagnosis? Crowdsourcing Tough Wound Diagnoses
A few weeks ago we began an experiment right here on this blog, taking a look at a complicated wound care case and “crowdsourcing” the diagnosis. We thought it would be fun to share some of the comments to date, along with some follow-up comments from me.
Revisiting “Squanto and the Miracle of Thanksgiving”
A life story you just can’t make up.
Diamonds May NOT Be a Girl’s Best Friend
As part of my holistic approach to wound management, I offered to wear this ring for awhile so the patient wouldn’t risk cutting herself with it again. For some reason she didn’t agree to that plan. I had to be satisfied with requesting a home health PT evaluation for...
Debridement Disgrace – Don’t Traumatize Inflammatory Ulcers
These excruciatingly painful left leg lesions began after a minor scratch five month earlier. New lesions had continued to form in response to debridements at another wound center. She had a new and rapidly enlarging anterior shin lesion on the other leg that formed...
EDS-Related Wound Dehiscence, a Not-So-Rare Condition in Wound Care
How many cases of EDS have I have missed in 30 years if I have found 3 of this “very rare” condition in one year?
Laundry, NPWT and Life after Death – This Week’s Undaunted Spirit
This beautiful lady (who is wearing a KCI VAC in the photo), is herself seriously ill, but she’s making the most of life after death. She is my definition of an undaunted spirit.
Wounds are a SYMPTOM – What’s the Diagnosis? Crowdsourcing Tough Wound Diagnoses
We need a diagnosis for this patient.
We Can Predict Whether a Venous Leg Ulcer Will Heal – We Know Not Everyone is Happy About That
A few weeks ago we published a manuscript about the development of the Wound Healing Index for Venous Leg Ulcers (VLUs). The link is below. What is the VLU WHI? The VLU WHI makes it possible to predict at the initial visit whether a venous ulcer will heal with...
Finalized Policy, Payment, and Quality Provisions Changes to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for Calendar Year 2020 | CMS
Here’s a link to the fact sheet on the final rule - stay tuned for my interpretation of its impact on wound management practitioners.
Wheels on Water and the Undaunted Spirit Award
With his permission, I’m posting this amazing photo of my friend and former patient, Kevin – whose mobility limitations do not keep him down. He’s also helping others experience the challenge and excitement of hunting, even if they hunt on wheels. You can support his...
The Doctor is Still Out
I guess I’d better figure out the doctor’s office setting.
The Hospital Based Outpatient Department – in 2020 the Doctor is NOT In
Hospitals can decide that they want direct supervision of HBOT, but that doesn’t mean it will be reimbursed. Stay tuned.
Wound Care Compare is Here
The payment reform train has left the station. Are you aboard?
Reaping the Whirlwind
We are reaping what was sown a decade ago. Get ready – there’s a big storm coming.
Did Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound Management Practitioners Miss the Payment Reform Train?
Five years ago, Dr. Guy Clifton, a Robert Wood Johnson Fellow, neurosurgeon, Congressional aid and author of the book Flatlined: Resuscitating American Medicine, spoke at the fall SAWC in a poorly attended session. Most Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound care practitioners...
Reflections on the Development of the MRI and Character
I can’t think of anyone I admire who has had an easy life. Just as fire purifies gold, trials produce character. Hang in there.
The Health Economic Impact of Living Cell Tissue Products (and Why This Matters) – Guest Blog by Dr. Helen Gelly
Guest blog post by Dr. Helen Gelly Using the claims data from Medicare that are publicly available, a newly published study which I co-authored looked at various parameters that will eventually impact the bundled pricing payment model. Because a number of insurance...
HBOT and Brain Injury – Guest Blog by Dick Clarke
Guest blog post by Dick Clarke of National Baromedical Services On August 1 of this year, a bill entitled the “North Carolina Veterans Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Treatment and Recovery Act” (House Bill 50 / SL 2019-175)...
WPS Coverage for Debridement and What We REALLY Need to Worry About
This is a much, much larger issue, and one that no one wants to talk about.
