It is no secret that many Americans, or people in general struggle with their finances. Well this post here will directly target those who are in the healthcare industry especially physicians. There as been many studies conducted in order to better understand the true nature of physicians status. One in particular was a recent study conducted by Wolters Kluwer Health that revealed that 90% of physicians in the U.S. are struggling with financial management and 91 % face challenges in shifting reimbursement models. Many Physicians are facing these demanding challenges because of increased costs and the adoption of healthcare IT as a result of the Affordable Care Act legislation. But, all of this and the many challenges that are to come can be overcome and taken care by adhering to some simple guidelines that will determine the line of travel of your practice and the business aspects of that.
Physicians are often asked what their top focus is for their practice within the next 3-5 years and about 48% of those physicians answer with making their practice more efficient. Many practices are exploring different business models such as mergers, or integrating with a hospital and or using patient centered medical homes, and adopting some pretty critical technology to aid in the clinical decision making process as well as evidence based decision making.
Being able to boost efficiency in a practice is the job of a revenue cycle management company or specialist. We aid in boosting efficiency while decreasing overhead and increasing profits to complete the loop in the cycle and keep your cash flow at its maximum.
Here are 5 steps that can drastically improve the functions of your practice and boost efficiency to the desired levels.
1. Make sure you are getting paid for your services. As I have been on my marketing campaigns and have spoken with several physicians I have come to the general consensus that many physicians have not even looked at their missed encounter reports for over a year and were unaware of the profits they had missed out on. So once the reports were reviewed they were astonished by the numbers and could not believe that they had let that money roll down the drain. Moral is stay on top these reports in order to better track your finances and be in the know what you are actually bringing in.
2. Maximize your schedule. You should start off by reviewing your no-show rate. If the no-show rate is 25% or greater you should look to double book 1 out of every 4 appointments. This will allow you to make up for the revenue and time lost due to the no shows and allow you to better recoup those funds by placing a person in those empty slots. You could have the potential to lose almost $1.2 million dollars a year as a result. Why lose when you can gain. Everything is strategic and you have to move and coordinate strategically in your practice in order to maximize profits and time equaling efficiency.
3. Expand your schedule. Just because you have been an established clinic for thirty plus years doesn't mean that you don't have any competitors. Many physicians are now in fierce competition with urgent cares and pain management clinics that except walk-ins. This can be a huge problem for established clinics because it means people don't have to make and appointment and go in at odd hours. So to compete with them and continue to make a profit you may have to change your schedule and open and close at different times in order to accommodate for patients busy lives. Or offer same day appointments.
4. Consider your use of space. I have been into doctors offices that do not utilize their space efficiently. I have seen entire rooms that could be used for seeing patients instead packed with records. What a waste. By eliminating paper files you are able to free up space that will allow you to see more patients which means more reimbursements and a greater profit. Simple as that.
5. Check your billing team. In today's world the healthcare is under a huge overhaul and is rapidly changing. Methods of the processing claims are becoming obsolete and soon many insurance agencies and the government will not use any of the old forms, but will be looking to claims electronically. It is no longer an efficient process to let your front desk personnel handle your medical billing. It should be left to the experts in order to better identify improper coding and to also maximize the codes for what you have actually done.
In short and needless to say that with the challenges that you are facing it would be economically sound for you to make some critical decisions and really review where you are at where you want to go.
That's why it is important for you to contact the experts and allow them to help you maximize your profitability and boost your efficiency. Here at Triple E Medical Solutions LLC we are proud to say that we have experienced teams across that nation that can help you get your practice on the right track. Let the Evolving, Efficient, Experts in Healthcare give you real time solutions to your real time problems.
Find out how we can help you improve your practice profitability and efficiency, contact us today at 888-338-7293 or by email at info@tripleemedicalsolutions.com.
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