Listservs Overview - American Academy of Ophthalmology

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Listservs Overview
Join the AAOE online discussion forum. Learn, share opinions and network with your peers! Access to the AAOE listservs are a free benefit to all current members.

Subscribe or manage your subscription

E-Talk: Subscribe or manage list options

E-Code: Subscribe or manage list options

E-Retina: Subscribe or manage E-Retina

Messages being sent from the AAOE List Server (E-talk, E-code, E-retina) have been temporarily flagged as potential spam by 3rd party Quarantine list providers. We are working with the 3rd party list providers un-flag our server.

NOTE: If you do not wish to receive emails from the listservs, it’s good practice to unsubscribe rather than send the emails to your junk folder as these are then marked as spam by the 3rd party quarantine system causing the listserv emails to get quarantined for everyone.

How does a listserv work?

Members register and provide an email address to receive and respond to messages sent by list members. List members have the option to receive a daily digest version of messages sent to the list or receive individual emails immediately as they are posted.

What is the difference between the three listservs?

E-Talk is an unmoderated e-mail discussion group that provides ophthalmic administrators, office managers and managing physicians with a forum to openly exchange ideas and discuss the business issues facing modern ophthalmic practices. Use this free member benefit to get answers to your questions about coding, human resources, financial management and other practice management issues.

E-Retina is an unmoderated e-mail discussion group that provides ophthalmic administrators, office managers and managing physicians with a forum to openly exchange ideas and discuss issues facing retina practices.

E-Code is an unmoderated e-mail discussion group that provides billers, coders, ophthalmic administrators, office managers and managing physicians with a forum to openly exchange ideas and discuss issues related to billing and coding.

How to participate

Managing Your Listserv Subscription

Go to the manage subscription page (member login is required):

Subscribe: Under the 'New Users' heading click 'Subscribe to the list' and follow the prompts.

Unsubscribe: Under the 'Existing Users' header, select 'Manage your list options'. Under the 'Unsubscribe' heading enter your email address.

Stop mail delivery temporarily: Under the 'Existing Users' header, select 'Manage your list options'. Under the 'Change Delivery' heading, click the 'stop mail' radio button.To receive mail again, return to the 'Change Delivery' section and click the 'standard' or 'mime digest' button to re-start your mail delivery.

Change your email address: Under the 'Existing Users' header, select 'Manage your list options'. Under the 'Change Your EMail Address' heading, enter your old email address and click the 'change email' button. You will need to change your email for each list you subscribe to.

NOTE: Changing your email address will not change the address at which you receive your regular AAOE communication. To change the address at which you receive your regular AAOE e-newsletters and additional member communications, go to “Update member profile” from the login box on any Academy/AAOE webpage.

Make sure your email program's spam filter is not putting list emails into your "bulk” or “junk mail" folder. Some email programs allow you to change your filter preferences to redirect messages from specific lists into your inbox.

When you click on the Search archived messages, View current messages, or Send a new message links, you may be asked for your email address to log in.

Posting Messages

After you subscribe, you will receive a confirmation email. You must reply to this email or you will not be subscribed to the list. After confirming subscription, you have several options to send messages to the list:

Send an e-mail to the specific list:
a. E-Talk: etalk@lists.aao.org
b. E-Retina: eretina@lists.aao.org
c. E-Code: ecode@lists.aao.org

Go to the subscription page for the specific list. Under the 'Existing Users' header, click the 'Send a new message' link.

Respond to an email from the group using your inbox 'reply' button.

Message Attachments

Add attachments as you normally would to your email and send it to the list via the direct address.

Searching for Archived Messages

Go to the manage subscription page for the specific list and select 'Search Archived Messages.'

Click on the tabs along the top gray border to begin a search, view current messages or post a new message.

Rules of Participation

In order to participate in the listserv, you must agree to the terms and conditions outlined in the Listserv Disclaimer, below.

Why can't we discuss salaries, fees or collective action on the listservs?

AAOE members participating in the listserv are doing so as members of an organization of competitors in the eyes of federal and state enforcers of antitrust laws. While one ophthalmologist can ask a colleague what she or he pays staff or charges to perform Lasik, these issues cannot be discussed in a forum sponsored by a professional society. The government views such pricing and other economic discussions as a way that competitors can fix prices, supply costs, salaries, and other economic measures in a noncompetitive manor that violates state and federal antitrust laws.

Participants can discuss Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement and codes, as these are the same for everyone. Discussions about concerted action towards private payers, insurance contract clauses and private payer reimbursement cannot be discussed. These rules protect AAOE, its members and the Academy from costly legal actions and potential fines by the Federal Trade Commission or the Department of Justice. For this reason, a poster who violates the rules will be barred from participating in the AAOE listservs and may, at the sole discretion of the AAOE Board of Directors, lose his or her membership in AAOE.

Netiquette

AAOE listservs are intended to discuss business issues. Members should refrain from posting forwarded emails, contests and other emails that are not relevant to the business aspects of ophthalmology practice.

Be forthcoming in your messages about any potential financial conflict of interest.

If you repost something from another source, it is only ethical and helpful to give credit to the original poster along with the full citation. If you forward something from one of the other listservs, make sure you give credit to the original poster and/or source.

DO NOT post any copyrighted material to any of the lists unless you have acquired permission to do so from the holder(s) of the copyright.

Keep your messages short to conserve bandwidth and encourage others to read your messages.

Remember, no emphasis or emotional tone gets transmitted through email. Jokes and sarcastic comments may be insensitive to others. Any criticism, personal attacks, and use of profanity are unwanted and will result in your removal from the listservs. You are responsible for what you post.

Use a descriptive subject line. Avoid subject lines such as “question” or “coding question.” Many people decide whether they want to read a message based on the content of the subject line and vague subject lines make it difficult to search the archive.

Viruses and Security

The listservs allows you to send attachments via email. Every attachment sent to the list is screened by anti-virus software before you receive it. However, this does not mean you cannot get a virus from someone subscribed to the list. If a subscriber is infected with a virus and responds directly back to you with an attachment instead of to the list, you may be infected. While we take every precaution to prevent viruses from spreading by way of the list, viruses will continue to find ways to adapt and attempt to outsmart screening software. We will make every effort to continuously upgrade our virus protection software.

Always follow these rules when dealing with email

Do not open attachments or click on links to websites embedded in the body of mail from people you do not know.

Do not open attachments with the following file extensions: .exe, .visa, .vba, .pff or any other unfamiliar extensions. You can respond to an individual who sends you an unexpected attachment to verify that it is safe to open.

If you run into difficulties, email aaoe@aao.org.

Also, note our virus protection software may at times incorrectly identify a harmless attachment as a virus and strip it from the email before it is sent to the list. If you send an attachment to the list and this occurs, email aaoe@aao.org.
The American Academy of Ophthalmology provides online information and services on the Internet as a benefit to its members and the public and to further its educational mission.

THE ACADEMY, ANY WEBSITE CONTRIBUTORS AND THEIR AFFILIATES DO NOT MAKE ANY WARRANTIES, AS TO THE ACCURACY, ADEQUACY OR COMPLETENESS OF ANY MATERIAL PRESENTED HERE, WHICH IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS. THE ACADEMY AND ITS WEBSITE CONTRIBUTORS ARE NOT LIABLE TO ANYONE FOR ANY: a) ERRORS, INACCURACIES, OMISSIONS OBTAINED HERE; b) DAMAGES OR INJURY TO PERSON OR PROPERTY FROM ANY USE OF IDEAS CONTAINED HERE; AND/OR c) ANY DAMAGES INCURRED IF MATERIAL INFECTS OR CONTAMINATES A USER'S SYSTEM.

The information published on the aao.org website is not intended to replace consultation with an ophthalmologist. The Academy cannot answer specific medical questions or refer you to a particular ophthalmologist.

Unless specifically stated otherwise, the opinions expressed and statements made by various authors on this website reflect the author's observations and do not imply endorsement by the Academy.

The Academy does not exert editorial control over and has not participated in the development of other Internet websites. The Academy does not support, endorse or hold any responsibility for hyperlink pointers, their website content, any of their expressed views, any services they offer or hyperlinks they mention. The Academy does not endorse any of the products or companies mentioned in the aao.org website.

Participants in E-Talk, E-Retina and E-Code ("AAOE listservs") are encouraged to use this forum for the free and uncensored exchange of ideas, information, critiques, and commentary. AAOE listservs are intended to discuss business issues related to ophthalmology. Members should refrain from sharing forwarded emails, contests, funds solicitations and other posts that do not pertain to the business aspects of ophthalmology practice. The nature of these forums is such that several words of caution (guidelines) are necessary to protect your interests and those of your fellow AAOE listserv members:

Certain discussions by physicians and others who are not part of the same group practice raise the risk of antitrust investigation and liability. This risk exists whether those discussions take place in a face-to-face meeting, by written correspondence, or through electronic communication. Compliance with the rules for AAOE listservs and forums require that participants do not discuss fees, acceptable reimbursement levels, current salaries or compensation for any office personal, including but not limited to ophthalmologists, optometrists, technicians, and administrators, or plans for collective economic actions (e.g., joint negotiations with or boycotts of third party payors or managed care plans, or decisions not to deal with particular types of providers).

In fact, the risk is even greater for AAOE listserv discussions, since by definition a written record is made of the communication. Because this is an AAOE listserv forum, such discussions could not only put you at risk for antitrust liability it could implicate AAOE and the Academy as well. Accordingly, you are asked to refrain from any AAOE listserv discussions about (a) what is an appropriate amount to charge for a particular procedure, (b) whether particular reimbursement amounts are sufficient or insufficient, collective actions that might be taken if reimbursement are deemed to be insufficient, and (c) whether ophthalmologists should do business with other types of providers for economic reasons (e.g., optometrists who charge excessive co-management fees). One exception to this caution is that discussions about Medicare or Medicaid reimbursement policies are generally permissible as long as they do not lead to anticompetitive actions (e.g., a collective agreement not to treat Medicare or Medicaid patients).

Although AAOE attempts to maintain the security of its listservs by limiting participation to AAOE members and selected consultants and staff, participants should not assume that AAOE listserv discussions are confidential or privileged. To the contrary, comments made on AAOE listservs could be forwarded to nonparticipants either by electronic or hard copy transmission. Moreover, electronic communications are often discoverable in court proceedings. This means that a plaintiff in a malpractice lawsuit might seek to discover AAOE listserv communications involving a particular defendant physician or a subject of relevance to the lawsuit. Such discovery efforts may well be successful. Therefore, participants should use discretion in their communications, particularly with respect to statements about their treatment of or contacts with specific patient or patients, or about the level of one's technical skills, that might later be used against you (or Academy member physicians) if litigation were every to ensue. Never mention a patient by name or give enough information that the patient's identity is revealed.

Participants should recognize that AAOE listserv discussions are tantamount to participating in a public meeting. Disparaging comments about the skills or techniques of other AAOE members or physicians are no more appropriate in one context than the other. This caution is intended both to encourage professional decorum of AAOE listservs and to reduce potential liability risks for participants and the Academy/AAOE.

Consultants who are eligible to participate in the AAOE listservs must agree to these additional terms:

Your participation in AAOE listervs (E-Talk, E-Retina, E-Code) is non-transferable. Only the primary person listed in the consultant directory may participate.

Your header and footer for each listserv comment must state: “consultant comment”.

You may not solicit your services in e-mail replies or postings.

You may not invite readers to contact your firm for further information.

If a reader voluntarily contacts your firm, you may engage in a professional relationship only after you convey – and they agree – that your services are separate and apart from AAOE’s general listserv activities.