Here are four ways to optimize orthopedic practice employees.
1. Delegate additional responsibilities. Though physicians are capable of tackling practice management and billing responsibilities, it is inefficient use of the physician's time to deal with these types of issues. Physicians should entrust a capable individual(s) with practice management responsibilities or outsource these tasks in order to focus on providing the best treatment for their patients. "The trick is to make sure you're delegating to the right people. The policy of forcing everything to run through a central authority makes the company stagnate because it just isn't efficient," says Jay Nussbaum, CEO of Healthcare Watchdog. "The doctor needs to learn to delegate both internally and externally. The doctor should be focused on medicine."
2. Standardize collection processes. Standardize the system for upfront collections from patients so your entire staff knows their responsibility. Write the financial policy in a professional way to make sure the patient pays upfront. "Train the staff to really make the process flawless, and make sure everyone disseminates the same information to patients," says Eva-Marie Alexander, west coast regional director of AAPC Physician Services. "Have one set of financial policies and stick to that."
3. Double down to relieve FTE. Scheduling issues often are drivers of overtime costs, especially if a practice or a physician is not prepared for a flux of patients, says William R Pupkis, CEO of Capital Region Orthopaedics in Albany, N.Y. "It is the responsibility of management to provide support to the physicians. If he or she is unable to manage it, then we must do so in their stead," he says. Using shared human resources employees, such as front desk staff, to relieve FTEs is one way Mr. Pupkis' practice has offset some of their overtime costs and has helped to support physicians in seeing their patients.
Another concern is that many staff members may come to depend on the extra income generated by overtime hours and may not react well when told this income will be cut. "This can be another aspect of overtime that can backfire," Mr. Pupkis says. You could end up losing a valuable employee. Remember, you lose the good employees first because they can get a job anywhere, and most probably for more money.
4. Incorporate employees from all levels in strategy meetings. At the quarterly strategy meetings, the Virginia Spine Institute gathers employees from all levels of the organization to discuss what the current initiatives from each department and how they can improve, says Thomas Schuler, MD, a spine surgeon, founded the Virginia Spine Institute. "These meetings build ownership by the employees of the organization," says Dr. Schuler. If your philosophy is to be more inclusive rather than exclusive it has a direct effect on participation and buy in with changes and improvements to processes and procedures.
In the strategy meetings, the participants discuss a diverse range of topics, including the perceptions or misperceptions of patients at the practice and issues among employees. At one meeting, the Practice Administrator decided to revamp the organization's healthcare benefits because employees were unhappy with that aspect of their compensation. Changes in the way information is disseminated to patients, the process for checking patients in and out of the clinic and how employees are educated at the clinic occurred as a result of these meetings.
1. Delegate additional responsibilities. Though physicians are capable of tackling practice management and billing responsibilities, it is inefficient use of the physician's time to deal with these types of issues. Physicians should entrust a capable individual(s) with practice management responsibilities or outsource these tasks in order to focus on providing the best treatment for their patients. "The trick is to make sure you're delegating to the right people. The policy of forcing everything to run through a central authority makes the company stagnate because it just isn't efficient," says Jay Nussbaum, CEO of Healthcare Watchdog. "The doctor needs to learn to delegate both internally and externally. The doctor should be focused on medicine."
2. Standardize collection processes. Standardize the system for upfront collections from patients so your entire staff knows their responsibility. Write the financial policy in a professional way to make sure the patient pays upfront. "Train the staff to really make the process flawless, and make sure everyone disseminates the same information to patients," says Eva-Marie Alexander, west coast regional director of AAPC Physician Services. "Have one set of financial policies and stick to that."
3. Double down to relieve FTE. Scheduling issues often are drivers of overtime costs, especially if a practice or a physician is not prepared for a flux of patients, says William R Pupkis, CEO of Capital Region Orthopaedics in Albany, N.Y. "It is the responsibility of management to provide support to the physicians. If he or she is unable to manage it, then we must do so in their stead," he says. Using shared human resources employees, such as front desk staff, to relieve FTEs is one way Mr. Pupkis' practice has offset some of their overtime costs and has helped to support physicians in seeing their patients.
Another concern is that many staff members may come to depend on the extra income generated by overtime hours and may not react well when told this income will be cut. "This can be another aspect of overtime that can backfire," Mr. Pupkis says. You could end up losing a valuable employee. Remember, you lose the good employees first because they can get a job anywhere, and most probably for more money.
4. Incorporate employees from all levels in strategy meetings. At the quarterly strategy meetings, the Virginia Spine Institute gathers employees from all levels of the organization to discuss what the current initiatives from each department and how they can improve, says Thomas Schuler, MD, a spine surgeon, founded the Virginia Spine Institute. "These meetings build ownership by the employees of the organization," says Dr. Schuler. If your philosophy is to be more inclusive rather than exclusive it has a direct effect on participation and buy in with changes and improvements to processes and procedures.
In the strategy meetings, the participants discuss a diverse range of topics, including the perceptions or misperceptions of patients at the practice and issues among employees. At one meeting, the Practice Administrator decided to revamp the organization's healthcare benefits because employees were unhappy with that aspect of their compensation. Changes in the way information is disseminated to patients, the process for checking patients in and out of the clinic and how employees are educated at the clinic occurred as a result of these meetings.