Yearly Archives: 2011

How to get what you want for the practice in 2012

Almost everyone wants to be more successful and achieve more each year than they did the year before. Here are a few straightforward things you can do to guarantee your success in 2012. First, ignite your passion for the practice. Recognize all the capabilities you have and how you can use those to grow the practice in the direction you want to take it. Your passion can energize everyone in the practice and give them the confidence and desire to help you achieve amazing things. Second, set goals that push your further, but are achievable. This is accomplished by reviewing benchmarks on key performance indicators and how they have trended over the past few years and raising the bar for 2012. Then set goals that stretch performance, but are achievable. This is accomplished by taking a historical look at practice performance trends and setting the bar a bit higher. Know what you want and then you can plan to achieve it. For example, do you want to do more of a particular procedure, do you want 10% more new patients, increase utilization of lucrative ancillary services or promogr a new procedure? You may even want to establish goals related to healthcare reforms push for monitoring quality and improving outcomes. Whatever you want to do, establish goals that are concrete and measurable. Next, develop a well-crafted written strategic plan. This is the beginning of a true commitment and using professional resources is worth the investment. An experience healthcare consultant can guide the process to ensure you develop a powerful plan that yields amazing results and positions the practice longterm success. So what are you waiting for? Contact Capko & Company, www.capko.com, and make 2012 your best year ever.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:41-08:00December 22nd, 2011|

Prevent and uncover embezzlement: webinar

Joe and Judy's recent webinar (sponsored by Kareo) was a big hit! If you didn't have a chance to attend 'live,' you can register and view it here: Embezzlment-proof your practice Most medical practices are victims of embezzlement at some point -- yes, you read that right! -- so if you haven't already learned how employees can become thieves and employers become marks, this is a must-watch webinar.

By Morgan|2011-11-18T11:27:10-08:00November 18th, 2011|

Leadership: It’s about treating people well

Joe Capko did a webinar with Medical Practice Management Web Advisor earlier this week on how effective leadership translates to more productivity from your staff -- and vice versa. One of his themes was establishing trust by listening and treating people fairly, and letting them know they are valued. People give more to their jobs when they know you care! Aptly, today's email tip from Harvard Business Review was called "Engage Your People," and featured some of the same ideas Joe offered. Basically, less top down, more listening, more working together. To read the HBR tip, click here.

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:41-08:00October 27th, 2011|

Hire slow, fire fast

The old Silicon Valley adage "hire slow, fire fast" is actually apt for any type of small business, including medical practices. The smaller the team, the more powerful this idea is, because as team size shrinks, each member's contribution becomes more critical to success. Moreover, a single poor performer or "bad apple" can disrupt a smaller team much more effectively than a larger one. Medical offices are generally small operations where everyone knows a lot about each other, and sometimes it can feel like a family. And firing a member of your family ... now that's hard! You want to be that nice person who supports someone who's having a tough time. That crabbypuss who comes in late every day, "forgets" to do the insurance checks that are her primary responsibility and never seems to notice when charts are lying around waiting to be re-filed has a family to support after all. Oh, gosh, do we really have the heart to fire her? Well, the problem with that "nice" thinking is that while you're being very, very "nice" to the poor performer, you're being decidedly NOT nice to everyone else on the team. They're all picking up after her, correcting her mistakes, putting up with her lousy attitude and starting their full work-day on time -- without Ms. Crabby, who's late again. Left unaddressed, this situation kills the morale of the good performers -- who may start performing poorly themselves or just leave for a job where they feel good work is recognized. Here's a nice essay on the subject from the CEO of Gilt in Inc magazine -- Gilt is an internet shopping site, seemingly with little in common with medical practices, but Kevin Ryan's observations are instructive for any sort of business. Firing the Wrong People Is Just as Important as Hiring the Right Ones

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:41-08:00October 27th, 2011|

Solving work flow problems

Balancing work flow and eliminating troublesome bottlenecks in a busy medical practice are chronic problems, but if ignored they become a financial drain and compromise patient service. In fact, a decline in profits and patient gripes are often the things that alert the physician or manager that workflow problems have gotten out of hand. But what's the best approach to getting to the root of your problems and finding the best solution? Start with communication. Meet with staff and enlist their support in clearly identifying where the bottlenecks are, what is causing them and what are the most reasonable solutions to pursue. It is leaderships job to be sure staff feels important and comfortable enough to come to you when they have a problem and believe they will get your support. Analyze the processes. Look for where the errors occur and where there are unnecessary steps or duplication of tasks. Even better, are there steps that can be eliminated through technology that save time, reduce errors and improve outcome? Invest in staff. Errors often occur and go undetected when new staff is not properly trained and when existing staff does not get on-going training to stay at the top of their game. This can result in frustration, poor morale and compromised outcomes, as well as causing division among the troops. Everyone needs the support of management; beginning with training and ending with performance evaluation and getting the tools to enhance performance.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:41-08:00October 10th, 2011|

Do you know HARO?

Media exposure can be a helpful tool for building and expanding your reputation -- by sharing your expertise, you can market yourself and your practice without "selling" and without outlaying cash. However, it can be challenging to make reporters aware of your expertise and willingness to contribute to their stories. HARO -- Help A Reporter Out (www.helpareporter.com) -- solves this problem for both reporters and sources. HARO connects reporters with qualified interview subjects through its website and thrice-daily newsletter service. Reporters submit questions and general information about the pieces they're working on, and the newsletter circulates all the opportunities to subscribers. There are multiple medical questions every day -- with outlets running the spectrum from small local newspapers and targeted magazines (e.g., by medical specialty) to national websites and print publications. Best of all, the newsletter comes to you, and a quick scan (just a few seconds) is all that's needed to see if there's an appropriate opportunity for you.

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:41-08:00October 5th, 2011|

Office Squabbles? Three Areas to Look for a Fix

Do you have conflicting personalities in your office? Do such differences result in petty squabbling? While inter-office conflicts are common, there are a few things an administer can do to greatly reduce conflict in the workplace. It's important to address conflicts before they affect the professionalism of your practice, the morale of your staff, and your practice's productivity. Most of what is attributed to personality conflicts in the workplace can be traced to a just a handful of sources for which you most likely are responsible! Job descriptions: It's all too easy for disputes to emerge when responsibilities are not well defined. In today's changing medical field, jobs change -- don't let those job descriptions lead to finger-pointing in the office. Clearly delineated responsibilities allow staff to both receive credit and take responsibility for tasks. Without clear definitions it's too easy for misunderstandings (of differences in performance) to escalate into personal resentments. Cross-training: The counterpart to clearly job descriptions is that your staff should be well cross-trained and able and willing to fill-in where they are needed. Cross-training has the benefit of helping everyone in the office truly appreciate what important roles the others are fulfilling. Additionally, it shows that you are interested in the well-being and career and skill advancement of your staff. There's a fine line between a groove and a rut! To the extent you are able, provide variety in the work environment so that your staff doesn't fall into an abyss of boredom. Fairness: If your staff perceives that some receive preferential treatment, morale will suffer and, with falling morale, it's only to be expected that friction will increase. An under-appreciated fact is that perceptions of fairness and openness to communication go hand-in-hand. If your staff feels they can approach you to complain because you have a sincere interest in their well-being, you are well on your way to resolving squabbles among your staff. Challenge yourself to hear that which is difficult for you to hear. No one is free from biases and your staff can serve as a mirror to your own policies -- it's important

By Joe Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:42-08:00September 30th, 2011|

An insurer will use Jeopardy-winning Watson computer to aid diagnoses

Is this a good thing? The Wall Street Journal and Slate report that Wellpoint will capitalize on the famed Watson computer's ability to analyze as much as 200 million pages of content in as little as three seconds to aid their own nurses as well as physicians in researching diagnoses. Oncologists are the first target group of physicians. Some concerns are being raised, though. Will the system be programmed to find the best -- not just the most cost-effective -- treatment options? And, of course, the data used to generate physician recommendations will be of critical importance. What are your thoughts on this news? An important advance for medicine? Or a potentially problematic development that could unintentionally create more bureaucracy, and put more control in the hands of non-doctors? Read more about this story: On The Wall Street Journal

By Morgan|2016-08-19T17:57:09-08:00September 12th, 2011|

The Time is Now for ICD-10 Planning

Regulatory requirements that affect the medical practice are changing rapidly. While the primary focus may seem to be on EHR systems and meaningful use to obtain those stimulus funds, there are other mandatory system changes that need to be addressed now, starting with the conversion to ICD -10 code set. The new code set represents an important advancement in diagnostic coding and conversion to it is required. Limitations of ICD-9 include limited descriptive reporting and inability to adapt to advances in medical procedures and technology. The new system promises more flexibility and descriptive capacity. As a result, more accurate healthcare data reporting is expected. Due to the significant structural differences between the existing ICD-9 diagnostic coding system and ICD-10 coding system, the transition to ICD-10 code set is one of the critical areas of change for physicians in the near future. Medical practices will be required to adopt the use of the ICD-10-CM code set by October 2013. Since the new system is relatively complex, you’ll want to make sure your entire staff receives the training they need as early as possible. One potential benefit for doctors that “under code” is that more precise diagnosis and procedure codes will enable more accurate reimbursement. Additional benefits include an improved ability to measure health care services, reduce coding errors, a decreased for supporting documentation with claims, and the ability to use administrative data to evaluate medical processes and outcomes. October 2013 may seem a long way off, but given the magnitude of this conversion it is important to address this change now in order to avoid severe work disruption and delayed or lost payments. The first step in planning for the conversion to ICD-10 is to assess the organization’s readiness for adapting the new codes and understanding the impact of the change on your practice. Practice leaders should meet with billing system IT representatives and develop an implementation strategy, time-line and budget to accomplish the conversion. The timeline should include adequate time for testing the system and it should contain a plan for providing essential education and training for the team members.

By Joe Capko|2011-10-27T16:54:55-08:00September 9th, 2011|

Why aren’t more physicians wealthy?

Michael Zhuang, an investment advisor with a focus on physicians, offered an interesting point of view in a recent post on Physicians Practice. He observed that doctors often fail to accumulate significant wealth in large part because they place too much emphasis on living a "doctor-appropriate" (i.e., fancy) lifestyle, they're so busy they don't have much time to focus on finances, and they tend to believe they can "do it all themselves." His recommendations include living within (or below) your means, dedicating time to financial planning, hiring a qualified financial advisor (he promises to provide some tips for doing so in his follow-up post) and focusing on what you do best (i.e., delegating non-revenue activities). We have a few things to add to his list, based on our work with small- and medium-sized practices: Fund your retirement first. Employee physicians usually have 401(k) plans so they can start the habit of "paying yourself first" for retirement. Practice owners are often challenged to develop these habits, first because their early years of investing in their practices may not permit much savings, and then because any retirement plan would require a bit of effort on their part to research and establish. Once you're earning income from your practice, don't let inertia prevent you from setting up an SEP (or other qualified plan), and funding it on a regular basis -- think of it as a regular bill that must be paid. Save your savings. Implemented a process improvement that increased profitability? (Say, for example, something you learned by engaging consultants for a practice review, or CPAs for a financial audit.) Much like salaried employees are advised to put their raises into savings automatically (so they don't adjust to the higher take-home pay by spending more), doctors can turn gains from improving their practices into investments for the future. (If your practice needs the funds reinvested for growth -- say, into marketing or an EHR -- then those needs might come first. The point is just to avoid the pitfall of spending at a higher level if your income moves up a stable

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:42-08:00August 29th, 2011|

Could your team be great? Aim for real.

Harvard Business Review posted a great tip today about "real teams." The pointed out that "real" teams -- i.e., groups that really work together as one -- all share three important characteristics: Shared sense of purpose Flexible skills Mutual accountability There's a great lesson here for medical practices. Physicians set the tone of purpose and accountability. Good training policies and skilled practice management ensure cross-training keeps everyone fresh and the practice able to withstand absences and staffing changes. Hiring people who can fit with the ethos of the team keeps everything humming along. Read more at Harvard Business Review.

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:54-08:00August 23rd, 2011|

Before you try social media marketing, try social media

Marketing via social media has many advantages for small businesses of all types. It's a non-salesy way to connect with customers at lower out-of-pocket cost to start up than traditional advertising. No wonder so many medical practices are exploring how they can get started with social media -- and no wonder that so many 'experts' are at the ready to tell physicians how they should get started. Usually, the advice begins by offering an entry point to begin using the social web. "Start by creating a blog," the advice might read. Or, "Facebook reaches more people and it's easy to create your presence." However, what this advice sometimes fails to consider is the personal connection that is the key to social media success. Users of these networks already know what engages them and what doesn't. Non-users who jump into social media as a marketers first, though, tend to stick out like sore thumbs. It's not that there's anything that mysterious about using social media -- after all, Facebook has 700 million users precisely because it's easy to use! -- but there is a certain flow to how people use it that's important to understand. So, before you try social media as a marketing tool, try it first as a user. For example, before starting a Facebook page, set yourself up with a Facebook account, and subscribe -- i.e., 'like' -- different organizations to see how they interact with their followers. (A few examples we like in medicine: Children's Hospital Boston, MacArthur OB/GYN, Kaiser Permanente, One Medical Group.) Another way to put your toe in the water with blogging: start out as a commenter. This is a great first step for would-be bloggers -- and, in addition to building your online reputation, comments on other physicians' blogs can give you links back to your website. The range of blogs published regularly and inspiring comments is as diverse as the population of physicians: something for everyone. Some lively medical blogs you might want to check out include Dr. Wes, KevinMD, Movin' Meat, Pharmalot, Diabetes Mine, Buckeye Surgeon -- plus, we'd naturally love to have you comment

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:54-08:00August 15th, 2011|

Using stock photos? Please reconsider.

If there's one thing you can do to make a huge difference in the credibility of your website, it's using real photos of yourself and your staff instead of stock photography. Stock photos never look natural -- and can even be misleading, especially when stock photos of people with different gender/age are used on pages showing your "doctors" at work. People don't expect you or your staff to look like models. They do want to make a connection to fellow human beings -- remember that they may be working with your practice at moments when they feel weak, nervous or vulnerable. Making your image warmer and more real will go a long way to connecting better with patients and prospective patients. For a humorous look at the pitfalls of stock photography, check out this slide show from Marketing Profs. You'll see immediately why stock photography can be so cringe-worthy!

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:54-08:00August 5th, 2011|

20 Minutes to Better Web Marketing

So many physicians and practice managers we talk with feel stumped by web marketing. With so many elements to consider -- your website, SEO, advertising, social media, and more -- it's no wonder it can seem overwhelming to tackle it all at once. But, the good news is, there are little things you can do to market yourself better online -- even if you don't yet have a website. One of the best, easiest, fastest ways to immediately kick your marketing up a notch: take 20 minutes to check and update your company information on four places -- Yelp, Healthgrades, Vitals and Avvo. Listings on these increasingly popular rating sites are absolutely free. In fact, in the case of Healthgrades, Vitals and Avvo, you're likely already listed, based on publicly available licensing information. By claiming your profile on these sites, you can make sure your profile is listed correctly, add phone number, and even upload a picture. If you have a website, you can add that, too. People visit these sites every day, so be sure you're showing up properly. What's more, by fleshing out your profile with your link and photo, you'll stand out versus the majority of physicians in your area, who most likely won't have taken the time to polish up their profiles. These sites also feed into Google, so confirming and updating your information will also improve the likelihood that people can find you when they search your specialty. By keeping an eye on these sites, you'll also be able to respond to any criticism from patients that deserves attention. For example, one practice we worked with recently was receiving high ratings for its doctors, but office staff were consistently rated lower for friendliness and helpfulness. The practice was able to learn from this feedback and adjust staff roles to address the issues. Yelp even allows you to respond to negative reviews on its site with a posting of your own -- which can be an opportunity to repair a relationship (or, at the very least, show other visitors that you do care about patient feedback).

By Morgan|2011-07-28T12:46:12-08:00July 28th, 2011|

Build Rock-Solid Financial Policies

The foundation for effective management of the revenue cycle is the practice's financial polices - so make yours rock-solid! They need to reflect the practice's culture and payment philosophy. This becomes more critical with the increase in high deductible insurance plans that place more responsibility on the patient. Here are some key factors in developing effective financial policies: Physicians need to agree on what their payment expectations are and let the manager enforce the policies. Include everyone involved in the process in the development of the financial policies and procedures. This often includes the scheduler, receptionist, data entry, coder, billing clerk, collection department and the manager. It is important to get their buy-in to develop policies that will work! Provide consistent training and support. Establish benchmarks for accurate patient registration, charge entry/payment cycle and error ratios, and days in accounts receivable. Provide adequate oversight to recognize when additional support is needed and to hold staff accountable to the standards outlined in the policy. Financial policies unify the practice and improve consistency in collection procedures To be effective, physicians and managers must define their expectations and clarify the processes necessary to achieve those expectations. Capko & Company a leader in medical practice management and marketing consulting. Judy Capko is the author of the runaway best-selling book: Secrets of the Best-Run Practices!

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:54-08:00July 23rd, 2011|

The Three A Strategy to Growing Your Practice

Here are three simple strategies your practice can take to attract more referrals, gain visibility and be the doctor of choice in your specialty. Forge Alliances: You can't build your network of referrals by sitting in your office, so get out and meet the other health care providers and potential referral sources. You can maximize the time spent and the gains in this endeavor by hiring a marketing director or consultant to go out and meet people of interest on your behalf. And remember, your competition is not the enemy - So forge relationships with other physicians in your specialty, as well. Build Allegiance: By providing the best service, you can to both the referring sources and the patients that are referred you will strengthen their allegiance to you. Feedback is an important part of the process so it is wise to develop an on-line survey to send to your referring sources to be sure you are on the mark and meeting their needs. It also keeps your name in front of them - and this is a very good thing! Express Appreciation: Honor your referrals by sending a thank you note and offering value add services. For example, you can offer a lunch and learn program at their practice to educate the entire staff about your specialty and your commitment to their patients. It is another opportunity to thank them for their allegiance. You'll want to thank both staff and physicians and this is a good way to do it. The three A's will have a powerful impact on building the kind of practice you want and gaining an enviable reputation as the "go to" doctor in your specialty. Capko & Company - your source for building a practice that shines. www.capko.com

By Judy Capko|2011-07-23T07:29:12-08:00July 7th, 2011|

Go green

Whether you are a academic faculty practice, multi-specialty group or a solo physician, there are some simple things your practice can do to protect the environment and save money while you do it! Cut printing costs by scanning insurance cards and posting internal documents on line such as employee manuals, newsletters and other shared practice information. Also print on both sides of the paper and save a few trees. Save on electricity by switching to Energy Star-rated light bulbs and remember to turn off the lights if you will be out of a room for 15 minutes or longer. Buy green products like both recycled paper and ink cartridges. Checkout biodegradable cleaning products at www.goodguide.com for helpful information. Implement a filtered water system and eliminate the use of individual plastic bottles. Have a green idea contest for staff to get everyone in the green mode and on board with making the practice more eco-friendly. Green is good!

By Judy Capko|2016-08-19T18:11:00-08:00June 27th, 2011|

Get a clear picture of practice performance: Part 2

Our last post talked about some of the key performance indicators a practice can examine to understand how well it is performing. Now we will dig a little deeper and look at other indicators that identify if a practice is above the norm and meeting the expectations the team has set. Managing referrals and the revenue cycle It is important to monitor and compare these additional performance indicators between each physician in the practice from year to year: Top ten CPT codes by utilization: Determines the high demand services and variables between physicians. This report can also be used to track payer reimbursement trends for these top revenue sources. Number of new patient and established patient visits: Monitors practice growth or decline. Referral trends: Tells you who are referring, who is not and how this is changing over time. This is also a good way to evaluate referral management and marketing efforts. Accounts receivable and days in A/R, DAR reveals how well you are doing at bringing in the money. Aged accounts receivable 90 days or more: An important indicator for monitoring internal billing and collection performance. Ideally ,this will be less that 15% of the total A/R. Outstanding claims: If there are variants between physicians there could be contracting issues or differences in physician coding (CPT and ICD) and reporting patterns. The old saying “you cannot manage what you fail to measure” is true. When armed with this data the practice will be able to better understand its position and know what corrective actions and changes need to be made. If this post brings a question to your mind that remains unanswered, contact us by following this link: www.capko.com. We are on your side!

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:55-08:00June 13th, 2011|

Get a clear picture of practice performance: Part 1

To begin your quest to understand how well the practice is performing is to compare last year’s financial performance to the prior year, examine shifting trends and identify the reasons these shifts are occurring. For example, are you doing less of a particular procedure and, if so, is there a reasonable explanation – or if one physician’s production took a dip was it due to more scheduled time out of the office or is it an abnormality that needs to be addressed. Perhaps one urologist’s aged receivable has spiked because of a payer contracting issue. Identifying these types of issues is a good start to managing finances better. It is also important to compare performance to your peers by obtaining the Medical Group Management Associations Cost Survey (if it includes your specialty), www.mgma.com and The annual Joint Statistics Report from the Society of Healthcare Business Consultants, www.nschbc.com. In a group practice it is important to look at the group as a whole, as well as the some specific numbers and benchmarks for each physician. Examine group performance based on the per physician averages to evaluate and manage income and expense trends and staff levels. For example, how does the practice compares to the average practice in your specialty around the country? • Number of full-time equivalent staff • Gross charges • Percentage of contract adjustments • Gross revenue, expenses and net profit • Operating expenses as a percentage of gross revenue If you simply want to know # of FTE (full time equivalent staff) and percentage of operating expenses against revenue let me know: Go to www.capko.com Capko & Company your source for practice improvement

By Judy Capko|2011-06-08T13:22:21-08:00June 8th, 2011|

New Post on Kareo.com: ACOs Around the Bend

We just published a new article on Kareo's blog about ACOs. Everyone's talking about them, but we wonder if all the anxiety's warranted. We anticipate there will be a lot of waiting-and-seeing, since the scale requirements (5,000 Medicare patients for main program, 15,000 for the Pioneer program), technology standards (well beyond meaningful use -- intense reporting and analysis of outcomes and savings), and uncertain upside potential should signal caution to all but the most prepared, well-funded and established groups. But, what do you think? Read the full post at Kareo.com.

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:55-08:00June 7th, 2011|

Be a Lean Machine

Solving work flow problems is among the biggest challenges medical offices face on a daily basis. Work flow issues can be caused by a lack of defined work processes and individual responsibilities or poor training. It may seem like an oxymoron but too little or too much staff can also be a contributor to poor work flow. Regardless, it will result in unhappy patients and diminished profits. It's time to get serious about creating a lean operating machine. Here's some tips to help you get started: Take a critical look at workflow bottlenecks. Map work flow: Examine processes throughout the office to identify and eliminate those that don't provide added value to the customer or the practice. Involve staff in seeking solutions to problem areas of work flow. Everyone needs to give a valid reason for the various steps they go through to complete a task as a first step to eliminate processes that are redundant or duplicated. Examine errors or tasks that are completed to find the cause and develop the right solution. Develop a written plan to implement the best solution, including target dates for incremental progress. Communicate throughout the entire change process. There will be times when you will want to refocus and perhaps change directions. Celebrate your success along the way!

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:55-08:00June 6th, 2011|

Master referrals and build a medical practice that rocks!

Mastering referrals is an art and a powerful tool in helping you create the practice of your dreams! Define your perfect patient, the demographics, the type of cases and the kind of patient you like to treat. Identify how you can reach those people and build a solid referral network. Create a marketing plan that nurtures the ideal referral sources and keeps your name front and center. Train staff on the solid principles of mastering referrals: Probing the patient to ensure you accurately documenting how the patient heard about your practice and tracking it in your practice management system Provide an outstanding patient experience: an aesthetically attractive and comfortable office; well dressed professional staff; staff and physicians that make each patient feel special from the time she or he calls the office until the bill is paid in full and everything in between; and thank the patient for choosing your practice. Conduct patient surveys to be sure you are on the mark with delivering an awesome patient experience. Honor and nurture referral sources. Thank them, ask if they are pleased with your service and find out if there is something else you can do to make sure they are satisfied. Network and be visible throughout your community. Be grateful and give back: giving of time and resosurces to support the community and causes you believe in. Stay constant in your efforts and measure your progress every quarter. This will help you build strategies that work and make your practice shine. You can be the master of your practice and build the practice of your dreams! Capko & Company; experts in medical practice management, strategic planning and medical marketing.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:55-08:00May 7th, 2011|

New! Read Judy Capko’s Articles from Around the Web

Our website is now updated with Judy Capko's most recent article links -- click here to read her 2011 and 2010 contributions to Physicians Practice, Urology Times, Repertoire and more.

By Morgan|2011-05-01T13:33:32-08:00May 1st, 2011|

Where Accounts Receivable Headaches Begin

Collection problems don't begin with a rejected insurance claim or a patient's failure to make prompt payment. The headache of managing the accounts receivable starts with the patient registration form - data collection. It' s the receptionists and schedulers failure to gather sufficient and accurate financial data when patients first contact the office. Why does this occur? It happens because we fail to train the receptionists and schedulers on billing matters. They need to view the patient registration form and the insurance cards as financial documents - much like a credit application. Spend more time on the upfront training with these staff members and educate them about the consequences of poor data collection: rejected claims, delayed payments and an inability to collect the patient's portion of the bill after the fact. Set up accountability standards for data collection. Establish a reporting mechanism that tracks the reason for rejected claims. Start looking over this information to identify the most common errors that cause claims to be rejected. Then train staff on better data collection techniques to overcome these problems and show them their progress each month. The staff of good intentions. In reality the scheduling and reception staff have good intentions, but if you don't train them and help them understand the details essential to collecting accurate demographic and insurance data, then you are a part of the problem. Help staff's good intentions turn into better performance. You will improve revenue and save time! Capko & Company, experts in medical practice management and marketing.

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:55-08:00April 22nd, 2011|

Practice management tips to stop the shrinking reimbursement

Know how much it really cost you to see a patient. Divide your annual operating costs plus the physicians wages by the number of patients you see each year. That's the number you need to know. Analyze payer performance. Look at your top 10 CPT codes and how the five highest volume payers are reimbursing for those codes. It the average on those top 10 codes does pay above the cost to see a patient you need to negotiate a better deal or drop the contract and see patients out of network. Develop strong relationships with payers: Y our provider relations person can help you get to the go to person for negotiating a contract that works. Understand what a payer wants from you - Better access, getting patients better quicker and patient satisfaction! Capko & Company - We are on your side and will help your medical practice shine!

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:55-08:00April 11th, 2011|

Stop Wasting Energy & Money

Medical practice revenue is tighter than ever. It's time for you to take critical steps to keep costs under control and improve profits. The first step to fixing the bottom line is to look for the waste. Wasted energy results in a loss of potential revenue and lots of frustration. There is waste throughout the typical practice, but most of it is silent and doesn't get the attention it should. Here's some common threads we see in your world: A lack of clearly defined job responsibilities that result in duplication of effort. Accepting poor performance and inferior outcomes Mistakes that one person makes and another one corrects because it seems faster or easier. The good news is all these things are fixable. Make the commitment. Look at the action that needs attention. Is it the scheduling, patient visit or billing and collections, or something else? Then flow chart the processes involved and identify the cause for errors and inefficiency, discuss the possible solutions and pick the one that makes the most sense. Then [and this is important] assign someone the responsibility to see it through, set a reasonable time-line to get each change completed and schedule meetings to review progress along the way. You may need to hire a consultant to get the ball rolling and develop a process improvement plan, but it will be worth the effort. Start thinking lean and reduce the waste! Once you see improvement it's time to celebrate. Your bottom-line will improve, staff will enjoy their work more and patients will be happier. Sounds like a win-win-win. So just do it! Capko & Company, experts in practice management and markeeting - We are here to help make your practice shine. s

By Judy Capko|2022-01-01T22:52:56-08:00April 5th, 2011|

Have you claimed your Place on Google?

Over the past year or two, Google has increasingly emphasized local web pages in its search results -- potentially a real boon for medical practices who have amassed detailed information in Google. One of Google's primary tools in delivering local results is Google Places, a profiling system that pulls information about an organization from all over the web. Google collects information about the organization algorithmically (searching individual firm websites, plus directories for categories like doctors, dentists, lawyers, etc), but also relies on business owners themselves to verify and flesh out their Google Places profiles. What's more, besides providing the opportunity to verify your data, Google Places allows you to add custom details like a description of your organization (you can even upload video!). Best of all, Google Places profiles are not only free, they help you obtain better results from Google searches for people searching for your type of practice in your local area. Here's an example of how the Places records boost results -- note the two doctors with pink flags at the top of the search for "gastroenterologist san francisco," and how much more visible they are compared to the other listings: Clicking on the "place page" link takes you to the doctor's Places page -- which draws the practice's contact information (even providing a map), reviews and other information (including a link the the physician's profile on Vitals.com -- all the more reason to make sure that data is accurate, too!). Having this profile online can be a great boost and timesaver for your practice -- helping patients find answers to questions about your location, hours, etc., without needing to contact you. (This is particularly useful if you don't have a website.) And, if you have a website, having links back to your site from multiple places on Google can only make it easier for more people to find your site. Best of all, this opportunity is absolutely free, and really easy to take advantage of. If you haven't claimed your Google Places record, set aside some time -- just 15 or 20 minutes will be plenty to get started -- to

By Morgan|2022-01-01T22:52:56-08:00April 5th, 2011|