Want a Financially Healthy Medical Practice? As changes continue to occur in the healthcare industry, physicians are taking a hard look at the numbers of a medical practice and gauging whether the year at hand will be economically successful. To analyze the productivity of the practice, physicians depend on accurate and timely information. However, with the focus of every practice on delivering quality health care, the financial side often becomes
Succession Planning Whether you are a solo practicing physician or a member in a larger group practice, it’s wise to begin thinking about your business succession plan. I have found in my consulting practice that many physicians seem to wait until the last minute to address the issue of succession. With advanced planning however, you can come to a financially beneficial conclusion and ease the transition of ownership. Succession Planning
Strategic Planning Following is an example of my strategic planning self-assessment. The purpose of these self-assessments is to give you a concise checklist of best practices in a physician medical practice (and other healthcare practices for that matter). This checklist follows the Pareto Principle of focusing on the 20% of business practices that get you 80% of the results. Therefore, I don’t claim that it covers EVERYTHING. But it does
The Medical Practice Consultant Medical practices have a growing need for specialized services. The healthcare industry in most parts of the country is volatile and constant change is the norm these days. This change presents acute business problems for all medical practices. Physicians need help increasing revenue and containing costs. They also need help adapting to a changing marketplace, because it will impact revenues and costs. This is why medical
July Edition of the Physician Advocate Summer in Texas is the best! But, we know this summer looks a bit different for many practices and physicians. In this newsletter edition we touch on branding and revenue, and one of our featured blogs answers a common question about marketing during a pandemic. Take a look at the July Newsletter below or browse through the featured blogs. July Newsletter Featured Blogs: Marketing
Marketing is Important Now The incomes of many medical practices have been impacted by COVID-19 and will continue to be impacted as the healthcare industry continues to go through its own changes and new payment patterns begin to evolve. The result could be that in the future there is stagnation or decline in the revenue streams of some practice units. Therefore, maintaining and growing revenues will most assuredly become a
Managing numbers vs. information One of my prior articles cautioned readers on the use of overhead rates as a financial indicator of practice performance. One of my colleagues called it “diddling” the overhead since overhead is an easy target in every medical practice. The point I want to make now is that numbers are important in managing a business. But never confuse fixating on numbers as managing the business. Numbers are
One of the most problematic areas of medical practice valuation is establishing a clear understanding of the factors a valuator must assess in order to arrive at an appropriate fair market value for a medical practice. Failure by one valuator or another to understand these factors can lead to an incorrect valuation, usually an overstatement of the true value of the medical practice. The following are factors you should consider
The Physician Merger Team Well, the first date turned out to be a good one and everyone wants to move forward. The physicians have decided to form a merger committee, participants from the respective medical practices have been selected and everyone is raring to get started. What’s next? One of the first things the merger committee needs to do is to implement a physician merger team. This merger team will
The Irate Patient The following is a situation that recently happened in a physician’s office: An irate patient came in to complain about the “no show” charge of $50. The administrator along with the billing manager went out to meet with him. His first comment was that he only wanted to speak with the “top person” in the office. After consulting with the patient’s physician, the administrator took the patient
June Edition of the Physician Advocate Summer is kicking off in Texas! As the weather heats up, the only constant we know, is that the world is in flux! But rest assured, we are staying on top of the news that impacts your practice. Take a look at the June Newsletter below or browse through the featured blogs. June Newsletter Featured Blogs: Mid-Year Tax Planning Strategies for Physicians Succession Planning for
Motivate medical office staff and enhance productivity With all of the responsibilities and demands that medical office staff face on a daily basis (e.g., unhappy patients to cope with, incessant calls to answer, and insurers to battle), keeping staff motivated can often prove a daunting challenge. Physicians, practice administrators, and office managers are working in some of the most intense environments that there are. Staff must deal with not only their