Tim Cook writes that FreePM (Free Practice Management) 0.8.0b is out: The highlights are; a much improved template management system, posting of patient charges from actions in the EMR, encounter audit code generation (more about this later), basic scheduling, ICD coding from the templates (details about this will be discussed on the FreePM list)…FreePM 0.8.0 was installed on the demo site and packages are ready for download from
http://www.freepm.org:8080/freepm_download The changes and current implementation plan may be read here. He also has some things to say about CPT codes and open source below.

** Again, the demo has reduced security protection. If you find a
function that does not execute properly it is probably because of a proxy setting I missed on the demo site. Please report it to the list and I will change it.

** About Reporting **
Any data in FreePM maybe extracted via pdf reports. After you install FreePM you simply add instances of ZpdfDocument via the management interface. If you need help with this please bring it up on the FreePM list. I plan to replace ZpdfDocument with the much more powerful ReportLab package before the 1.0 release This will allow extensive graphing functions as well.

** A WORD ABOUT CPT CODES **
I have discovered that many people do not realize that CPT codes are not available for free. It has not been determined to what extent an opensource project can use them under the Fair Use Act (this mostly covers journalists). So, I have used a very few in the demo, they are called charge_codes in FreePM. If you subscribe to the AMA’s CPT codes you may input them into the charge tables (fee schedules). Commercial support for FreePM from Free Practice Management, Inc. will include these codes.

FreePM project leader Tim Cook has this to say about FreePM’s future directions:

‘…We are currently testing FreePM on Zope 2.3.1b1. If all goes well, it will be the platform that our 1.0b ships on next month. It’s looking good so far. The feature list for FreePM 1.0b is coming together nicely. After more market research and lessons learned at the Fresno Summits, the list of features for the first version of FreePM has been pared down… His ‘future directions’ statement in its entirety follows.

FreePM is moving forward.

We are very happy with the Python/Zope platform because it brings such a robust and varied assortment of pre-built tools. Granted, learning to use Zope has not been an easy task. But like a true open source project it has gotten easier to learn and more stable with each new release. For more information about the future of Zope I invite you to read: http://dev.zope.org/Resources/ZopeDirections.html

We are currently testing FreePM on Zope 2.3.1b1. If all goes well, it will be the platform that our 1.0b ships on next month. It’s looking good so far.

The feature list for FreePM 1.0b is coming together nicely. After more market research and lessons learned at the Fresno Summits, the list of features for the first version of FreePM has been pared down.

We have determined that it is more beneficial to produce a GOOD electronic medical/health record system without a lot of practice management functions than it is to incorporate these functions at the expense of the core patient record. By using the datastorage and communications features of Zope, a link to virtually any practice management system can be built to provide bidirectional data exchange.

I trust that everyone on the mailing list will agree with this position. I sincerely believe that in the long run this change in scope will create a better more useful product that will fill
the needs of many physicians offices.

There is still some work to be done on the template generator before the promised 0.6b release. I hope to see it finished up this week.

Thank you all,

—
Tim Cook, President – FreePM,Inc.

http://www.FreePM.com Office: (901) 884-4126

New MedicationManager, Try it now at:

http://www.freepm.org:8080/FreePM