Yearly Archives: 2010

For better or for worse

The economy remains unpredictable. The outcome of health care reform is unknown and health care leaders keep on wondering what the future holds. Young physicians entering the market will proceed with caution when making a decision about their future. Employed physicians may sit on the sideline and watch the ball game, but if you are in private practice and entrenched in the community chances are you'll stick it out - for better or for worse. Take heart, there are steps you can take to make things better. Know your position. Examine practice finances; how well money is being managed in terms of improving revenue, controlling expenses and managing accounts receivable. Are you better off than you were this time last year? If not take strides to make a difference by setting financial goals and establishing methods to attain those goals. Embrace the future. Look at what's happening around you and the changes that are coming down the pike. Read, listen and explore the impact of these changes. Use this information to develop a strategic plan that positions you for the future. Identify what resources you need to accomplish this and turn to experts to help you out It's all about being prepared and responding sensibly. Act, don't react and you'll make better decisions for your future! Capko & Company, a leader in healthcare management and marketing consulting.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00December 29th, 2010|

Dream Teams

Here's seven key points that exist within a Dream Team. Players are motivated toward the same goal. There are effective communication channels between each team member. Criticisim is respectful, honest and constructive. No idea is considered stupid. The culture is deep-seated in team unity. Team is willing to compromise to achieve goal in real time. Ability of team members to face obstacles objectively. With a strong leader you can inspire your staff and work toward creating the Dream Team. It's worth the effort! Capko & Company is one of America's leading healthcare practice management and marketing consulting firms.

By Judy Capko|2010-12-14T17:42:34-08:00December 14th, 2010|

Five Steps to Improve Patient Collections

Here's how you can make patient collections better in 2011: Do your homework upfront. Research patient balances before the patient arrives for his or her appointment and know what the patient owes. Then you are prepared to ask for payment at the time of visit. This is when the patient is the most motivated and when you will get the best result! Establish consistent financial policies. Clarify your expectations of staff and patients. This means the stakeholders agree on the policies and establish methods to support and enforce the policies. Provide tools and training. Part of supporting those policies is providing staff with the tools and training essential to do the job right. The billing department can train reception and scheduling staff on how to review and understand a patient's account. Management can have in-services and role play to give staff the right words and confidence to ask for payment. Define responsibilities. If you want a committed staff that gets results it is important to clarify the processes involved in collections. Determine which staff members will perform those tasks. This includes who does what before the visit, at the time of the visit and following the visit. Establish and meet collection goals. Examine past performance when it comes to collecting at the time of service and set the bar higher. If you have typically collected an average of $1,000 a day from patients that owed $2,000 you have been collecting 50%. Why not set the goal 10% higher each month until you reach 80 or 90%? Then when you reach the goal thank your staff and celebrate your success. Capko and Company is one of America's leading health care management and marketing consulting firms. We are here to serve you.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00November 30th, 2010|

It’s Time to be Grateful

The holiday season has arrived. It's full of hustle and bustle and year-end activities that occupy our time. Despite economic concerns and regulatory issues that continue to impact the way we operate our medical practices, it's still a time to be grateful. Be grateful for the patients that put their trust in you and recognize there are many opportunities to grow the practice and the bottom line in 2011. Here's a few things to consider: Thanking your referring sources still has a lot of power and is a true expression of your appreciation. PQRI, the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative, offers an opportunity to be eligible for year-end bonuses if you are reporting on standards of care when submitting claims. To find out more, go to the CMS website. For practices that have more than an occasional missed appointment, you can add an impressive amount of revenue to the bottom-line by managing the schedule better and taking corrective actions to ensure patients are committed to keeping their appointments. Look at your 2010 performance and set the benchmark higher for 2011 in key areas such as increasing the number of new patients, improving collections, and managing or even reducing staff overhead (the highest cost on your income and expense report). If your staff is accumulating over-time hours it's costing you plenty. Find out why and solve it. Honor your patients. In January send your patients an appreciation card for selecting your practice. It's also a good time to remind them to take good care of their health by scheduling annual check-ups and follow up appointments. We are grateful to our clients and the trust they have in us. Here's wishing all of you a prosperous 2011. Capko & Company is one of the nation's leading practice management and marketing consulting firms.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00November 24th, 2010|

Get patients on your side

By Joe Capko, Senior Consultant Not every patient walks in the door with a smile - and for good reason. Some of them are worried about their health, but others simply aren't convinced you are glad to see them. Once in awhile an employee will get so caught up with what he or she must accomplish during the patient visit that they leave their table manners behind. This doesn't make a patient feel important. When patients think you care they get on your side. This will save time and contribute to making your day run smoother. Here's three easy tips that will get the patient on your side. Get rid of that terrible sign in sheet. It's an excuse to ignore a patient. Greeting a patient is your responsibility and the right thing to do! Introduce yourself and put a smile in your voice. It helps Mr. Nervous feel he has a friend he can depend on. Before you say goodbye always ask the patient if there is anything else you can do for her. She will feel important and know you are on her side. These tips are easy to implement, will improve patient satisfaction, result in a more compliant patient, and make your day at the office more pleasant. Judy Capko is one of America's leading healthcare consultants and author of the now famous book: Secrets of the Best Run Practices. Check out: Capko & Company; https://capko.com/

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00November 18th, 2010|

Shabby isn’t Chic!

When was the last time you looked around your office with a critical eye? It may be time to take down those 1980s drapes and silk flowers, and put on a new vibe with cool paints. It doesn't take much to bring your office up to date, but when you fail to do it you look like you are "Stuck in the Past". Your office reception room should look sharp and up to date, and give the feeling of a comfortable room in your home -- Good lighting, good reading, and a sense of friendliness. Get on board and get with the new generation of color and splash for your office. If you don't, your image will be tarnished and your patients just might see you and your practice as old and out of sync. That doesn't say much for you, does it? Get with it - We are 10 years into the new millennium - does your practice show it?

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00October 25th, 2010|

What Makes a Practice Great?

The foundation of a great practice begins with leadership that is a paradoxical blend of humility and professional will. The will and unwavering resolve to set a standard and get superior results. Their personal humility is evident in their compelling modesty and calm determination.Most importantly, great leaders channel their ambitions into the practice not themselves. They enthusiastically give the credit to others for what is achieved, but look in the mirror when things don't go right.This is the kind of leader we want to work for. It is the kind of leader we inspire to be.Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants and the founder of Capko & Company, www.capko.com

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00October 9th, 2010|

What’s Your Time Worth?

Doctors and managers work hard to keep the practice afloat and provide good care, and service to the patients. But it's not just about working hard, it's about working smart!Ask yourself what your time is worth? Physicians and managers are the drivers of the practice and need to work at the highest level to generate and protect the revenue that keeps the practice running. Too often when working with practices, I see sabotage that results in poor management of your most important commodity - Time! Here's what you can do about it.Stop the interruptions: Sometimes they are valid, but often they are not. Pay close attention and you may discover that you are being interrupted unnecessarily. Set some guidelines that keep interruptions at bay. Delegate more: If you are doing tasks or assuming responsibility for things that can be done by someone else, it's time to evaluate why. It may be a matter of just not wanting to take the time to provide proper instruction or train someone to do a task, but it costs plenty. Delegation provides an opportunity to enrich a staff members job while freeing your time. Physicians just might see one more patient a day and that adds up to as much as $50,000 a year. When managers free up more time it gives them the opportunity to be strategic in planning for the future and ensuring revenue is not compromised.Now it's your turn - give our bloggers your best tips on managing time better.Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants. e mail judy@capko.com.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00September 28th, 2010|

Your future may seem like a roller coaster ride – So What?

Yeah life in the medical practice isn't what it use to be, but neither is driving in the fast lane. Your best road to success is to focus on the positive and to realize you have choices. No more grumbling about what is wrong with the system - it's time to take action. Here's what you can do....First, learn more about your own practice. Look at the numbers - tangible evidence of practice performance! Then ask how your practice compares to same time last year and what actions can you take to ensure you are better off in the future?Next, take action! Set goals and strategies to achieve them. Make the investment in resources, time and money to take your practice to a new level and protect your future. Make the commitment.Then involve the staff. Ask them for input in how the practice can achieve its goals by tapping into their talents. Get everyone on board and the amazing results will surprise you.Finally, when goals are achieved, celebrate with staff and share the rewards. The future's yours. Grab it and make a difference. You'll be glad you did.Now readers, tell me what you think and give our readers something to think about!Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants and author of the runaway top-selling book: Secrets of the Best-Run Practices. www.capko.com

By Judy Capko|2011-03-13T12:23:34-08:00August 24th, 2010|

How to be a better-performing practice

We hear a lot these days about best-practices, benchmarks and key performance indicators, but what does it really take to be a better-performing practice?It starts with developing your own report card. Determine what key performance indicators you want to follow. Here are some standard industry measures: Total accounts receivable (A/R) and days in A/R (DAR)Percentage of A/R over 120 daysPercentage of insurance contract adjustmentsCollection ratio as a percentage of charges minus contract adjustmentsIncome and expense as a percentage of revenueStaffing costs as a percentage of revenueNumber of full-time equivalent employees (FTEs) based on 40 hour work weekNumber of new patient visits and established patient visitsNext, Review your data and past performance history. Prepare your calculations based on per FTE provider number. Compare this year's practice performance to the same time last year. Also compare your figures to national data from MGMA's Cost Survey, http://www.mgma.com/ and NSCHBC's statistical report, http://www.nschbc.com/ for your specialty. Some of the national data represents the average among all the sampling practices - that is the 50% mark, so this should only be a base. Shoot be in the top 10% to be a best-practice. Now set improvement goals where you are not in top 10%, increasing your goal each year until you reach the mark.If your performance with these key indicators is already at the best-practice level, expand the tracking to include other indicators that compare your performance in these suggested areas:Indicator: GoalLow turnover: Rolling three year average under 15%Staff over-time pay: Less than 3 hours per provider each weekPatient wait time: Less than 15 minutesClaims error rate: Less than 3%Collection at time of service: 90%Missed appointments: Less than 5%Now you'll have some real tools to work with - so start tracking! If you need help, call on a consultant in your area.Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants, and author of the runaway top-selling book: Secrets of the Best-Run Practices. https://capko.com/

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00August 7th, 2010|

Talk to me

Communicating better improves morale and performance, and cuts down on turnover. Poor communication wastes time and makes those you interact with feel discounted. It's even more magnified with the younger generation. Generation Y wants lots of feedback and they want it NOW! The annual review just isn't enough, so start communicating better. Talk about youd expectations, their achievements and what can be done differently. Share your goals and build a culture that supports it - beginning with communication. And remember, communication is a two-way street. Be willing to listen to feedback, as well as giving it! You'll be glad you did. Now, tell me what you think - share it with my readers.

By Judy Capko|2012-06-06T13:51:03-08:00July 15th, 2010|

Top-down a killer for practice performance

If you want to get the most out of staff, keep them happy and keep them keeping the patients happy, pay close attention to these facts.A top down attitude is a hierarchy that focuses on management discussing problems and making decisions with minimum input from staff. It's a mentality that threatens the practice team, destroys morale and guarantees high-turn. The costs to the practice and the patients is a killer. Don't let it happen to you!Involve those affected by a potential decision in the decision-making process. Be a good listener and value their input - They can provide you with critical information that helps you make a better decision. Without their input you will not have their buy-in, which will almost guarantee that the change process will not succeed [or yield the desired results.] This could be because staff does not have a clear understanding of how they will benefit from the changes and may feel threatened. Then again, it could be due to deliberate sabotage. Either way, you lose!Your success depends on everyone working for the common good of the group, but this can only be achieved by valuing staff and gathering information, greater participation in the decision-making process.Don't you agree?Followers; share your opinion and pass this blog on to your colleagues for their reply.Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants. Go to www.capko.com for more information

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:57-08:00June 28th, 2010|

Dr. Newbie may be sinking

I've seen too many practices go through one, two and even three associates over a short period of time. They get sour and think young doctors just aren't what they use to be. Maybe, but maybe you aren't the same either. Physicians and administrators are so busy these days and have so much going on that they sometimes fail to give Dr. Newbie the tools to succeed. It's your job to provide Dr. Newbie with a good orientation, clear expectations, an understanding of the schedule, documentation requirements, billing processes and what support staff he or she can depend on. In other words you need to plan ahead, communicate well and be there when Dr. Newbie needs help. Then everyone wins and the team gets stronger! That's doing your job right. So look in the mirror when you have an associate physician that jumps ship after year one or two and think about what you might have done to make things turn out differently.Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants, and author of the runaway top-selling book Secrets of the Best Run Practice. Check it out by clicking on the book icon at www.capko.com

By Judy Capko|2011-03-13T12:22:56-08:00June 12th, 2010|

A Winning Team

Employees emulate management, so if you want a winning team you gotta set the example. Positive interaction with staff drives better performance and makes everyone as winner. It's all about the tude, the attitude! Here's my top list of BE attitudes: Believe. Recognize individual strengths,set high expectations and praise their achievements. Be visible. Make the rounds by walking through the practice at least once a day. Greet each person and ask how the job is going. Be approachable, be part of the team! Be supportive. Recognize when a staffer is struggling or has a problem that interferes with his or her ability to perform the job. Provide support and seek meaningful solutions. Be Timely. Don't disregard employees or compromise the relationship by putting things off. If you've scheduled things that involve staff and are inclined to postpone them, don't. Here's a few examples: - Annual performance reviews - Staff meetings - Employee training and feedback sessions - Celebrations - Purchasing promised equipment or supplies Keep morale high, value staff and be a winning team. Hey readers, if you have additional tips share your comments. Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice practice management and marketing consultants.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:58-08:00June 5th, 2010|

The Lunch Hour Debacle

If you shut down the phones during the lunch hour you are on the fast track to losing potential new patients and aggravating existing ones. It also results in greater phone traffic when the lines open up again, resulting in chaos.Other service industries would never dream of closing down their phones at lunch. Why? Because being available opens the door to serve their customers better and to gain new business. If you lose 2 new patients a week it could cost you more than $36,000 in lost revenue a year. Employees can stagger their lunches to give you telephone coverage. So stop the lunch hour debacle!Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants and author of the runaway top-selling book Secrets of the Best-Run Practices now in its second edition. Check it out by clicking on the book icon at www.capko.com

By Judy Capko|2011-03-13T12:22:56-08:00May 29th, 2010|

Our Mission

Our mission is to make your practice shine.Our vision to achieve this: 1) Support business principles that drive a medical practice's success.2) Offer management continuing education presentations, articles and books.3) Foster the value of job training and enrichment programs.4) Coach physicians and administrators in mastering their leadership skills.5) Be the go to person for practices that seek to be top performers.Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants and author of the runaway top-selling book Secrets of The Best-Run Practices now in its second edition. Check it out by clicking on the book icon at www.capko.com

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:58-08:00May 26th, 2010|

What’s Bugging You?

Hey Doctors and administrators, I know you have frustrations and issues that plague you in this volatile healthcare environment. Tell my readers what's bugging you. What you share with them can lead to a discussion where everyone benefits. So follow this blog and let's talk. Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultant and author of the runaway top-selling book Secrets of the Best-Run Practices available at www.capko.com

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:58-08:00May 19th, 2010|

Five things you can do to bring money in the door

Staff Can Make a Difference!Set up solid financial policies the physicians will endorse and establish methods to improve collection of patient payments. Here's six actions you can take:1. When a patient schedules an appointment verify address, employer and benefits. Also remind him or her the amount due on the account.2. Review patient accounts the day before their scheduled appointments and verify insurance eligibility and benefits.3. Make it easy for patients to pay: Accept credit and debit cards.4. Determine average percentage of daily revenue now being collected from patients against the average amount actually owed and set specific goals for improvement.5. When patients arrive and depart, don't ask if the patient wants to pay - ask how they want to pay; check, cash, credit or debit.6. Identify who the go to person if their is a dispute about the bill while the patient is in the officeBe consistent in applying these actions and watch patient revenue soar.Do you have other collection tips? If so, please share them with the followers of this blog.Announcing the release of Judy Capko's runaway best selling book Secrets of the Best-Run Practices, 2nd edition. To check it out go to www.capko.com and click on the book icon.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:58-08:00May 14th, 2010|

Get What You Deserve

Are you taking a hit on revenue?If you are not analyzing your reimbursement from different payer source and don't have a clear understanding of what it cost to see a patient you may be taking a hit that you can't afford.Start with understanding the basic cost for you to see a patient. Take your practice operating expenses for the past twelve months and add in the physicians' salary and payroll taxes to know your true costs. Divide this by the number of patient visits last year and you have a good starting point.Next examine payer performance. You can determine the average per visit reimbursement by payer by dividing the number of visits by the total payments for each particular payer. Now you you have a concrete number you can compare to your cost to see a patient. If you aren't getting paid more than it cost to see a patient and make a reasonable profit its time to think about what actions you can take to reverse this.Need help? Contact Judy CapkoJudy is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants. e mail judy@capko.comAnnouncing the release of the 2nd edition of the runaway best-selling book Secrets of the Best-Run Practices. To check it out go to www.capko.com and click on the book icon.

By Judy Capko|2011-03-13T12:22:56-08:00May 10th, 2010|

Energize Your Website

Power-up your website If you don't have a website get one. If you do have one, enhance it and make it all it can be! It will save staff and physicians time. Most patients already use the Internet. They use it to make airline reservations, check the weather, follow their investments and get information. Better service, better communication The website is the perfect vehicle to tell patients about the practice, physicians and staff. It can provide directions to the office, seasonal reminders and lead patients to the appropriate sources to obtain reliable clinical information about medical conditions. This will result in more efficiency. Patient portals Websites can be designed to be more interactive through a patient portal that is HIPAA compliant. By establishing designated parameters your patients can register on-line. You can also set up a patient management system so patients can review certain portions of their medical record. And why not provide patients with convenient pay-on-line capabilities to improve cash flow and staff efficiency? Reduce telephone madness Patients can also communicate with your office through e mail, reducing the volume of incoming phone calls to the office. It allows a staff member to read and respond to the e mail at their convenience; provides timely documentation and tracking; and reduces those in-bound phone calls. Websites are only limited by the imagination. Announcing the release of the 2nd edition of the runaway to-selling book by Judy Capko: Secrets of the Best-Run Practice. Check it out by clicking on the book icon at www.capko.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:59-08:00May 5th, 2010|

More on EHR government funding

How EHR Stimulus Funds Are DistributedLast week's blog was a brief primer on what you should know about electronic health records including some information about how the government is beginning the process of defining meaningful use of EHR application that is essential to qualify for stimulus funds available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, ARRA, of 2009. Here is a schedule of how the stimulus funds will be made available to physicians that meet the government's criteria based on what year you implement EHR meeting the criteria.1st year funds and funds each consecutive year that follow2011: $18,000, $12,000, $8,000, $4,000, $2000 = Total: $44,0002012: $18,000, $12,000, $8,000, $4,000, $2,000 = Total: $44,0002013: $15,000, $12,000, $8,000, $4,000 - Total: $39,0002014: $12,000 $8,000, $4,000 = Total: $24,0002015: Total = $0Source: US Department of Health and Human ResourcesThis provides a snapshot revealing that implementing EHR before 2013 provides the greatest amount of stimulus funds. It's not too early to start researching implementing EHR into your practice, but keep a watchful eye on how the proposed legislation published in the Federal Register on January 13, 2010 is revised before it is finalized to make sure your EHR decision is in sync with government minimum standard requirements.The devil is in the detail! Judy Capko is one of America's leading practice management and marketing consultants. e mail judy@capko.com. zz

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:59-08:00April 25th, 2010|

What you should know about electronic health records

The government's push for physicians to get on board with electronic health records, EHRs, is outlined in the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, ARRA, of 2009 which has changed the landscape regarding electronic medical records.Federal stimulus funds are available that promise as much as $44,000 per physician to implement EHRs before the end of 2012 – Not all that far away.To get these funds, physicians have to prove meaningful use. Meaningful use is still in the process of being clearly defined by the Feds. Specific requirements are outlined in the proposed rule published in the January 13, 2010 Federal Register.Stage 1, the initial period of EHR described in the proposed rule, defines use focused on capturing health information electronically. 25 criteria for physicians to meet Stage 1 of meaningful use includes such things as:Maintaining an up-to-date problem list;Generating and transmitting at least 75% of all permissible prescriptions electronically;Maintaining an active medication list with at least 80% of all unique patients; and Having a least on entry providing clinical summaries to at least 80% of all patients for each office visit. You can see this will, indeed, change the way most physicians currently work and manage their patients’ health records. The proposed CMS requirements set the minimum standard for acceptable EHR use, which at this time means being CCHIT certified. This certification is accomplished through the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology, which rates EHR products on usability ensuring that vendors meet the major objectives of meaningful use.Until the proposed legislation is finalized physicians will not have essential information to guide the decision process. In the meantime gather information to help you make an appropriate EHR decision. Selecting and EHR is a long and arduous road. Make sure you are armed with the tools to make the EHR decision that best fits your practice specific needs. Certainly the ARRA’s financial incentives are designed to convince many physicians to implement EHRs and will be effective in doing so. But don’t leap into it without a clear understanding of the government’s final requirements once legislation is passed. Contact Judy Capko,

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:59-08:00April 21st, 2010|