Building Effective Patient Education Programs
Patient education programs can help physicians empower their patients to be a partner in their own care, and meet quality metric targets.
Essential Tools for Building a Direct-Pay Practice
Patients come to a direct-pay practice for improved access to physicians. In order to deliver on that promise, a physician must have the right tools.
Keeping Medical Practice Staff Happy
Well-deserved praise not only induces your staff to work harder, it can make patients happy, as well.
Communicate Effectively with Medical Colleagues
No matter how you choose to communicate - view every single message you deliver as a piece of formal correspondence that will live on in perpetuity.
Strategies for Dealing with Value-Based Modifiers
Value-based reimbursement programs have arrived. Physicians can react with frustration or adjust their practices to meet the new metrics for payment.
Five Reasons Your Staff Fails to Collect from Patients
Collecting from patients is vital to a practice's bottom line. But often, it is an inconsistent process, done poorly. Here's what you can do about it.
Is Top-Down Management Right for Your Medical Practice?
Do you spend more time sorting out staffing issues than you do delivering patient care? If so, you might want to consider a different management style.
CMS Value-Based Modifier: Ready or Not?
Medicare's value-based modifier is a new fee schedule adjustment that will reward or penalize physicians for quality of care in 2015.
Six Keys to Effective Physician-Patient Interactions
Taking time to build quality interactions with your patients can actually save you time, and help you become a more effective physician.
Group Visits: Are They Right for Your Medical Practice?
Group visits are an opportunity for busy practices to solve patient-demand problems, and to make sure patients get the care they need.
My Direct-Pay Primary-Care Practice: 2 Years Out
After converting to a direct-pay practice two years ago, this physician has learned a thing or two and is glad he made the change.
Five Ways to Say No to Professional Obligations
Busy physicians are frequently overwhelmed with competing obligations, both at home and work. You'll be happier if you develop a strategy for saying no.
New Surgical Coding Modifiers Replace Modifier -59
Over the summer CMS added four new modifiers that will require a much greater degree of specification when coding surgical procedures.
Healthy Conflict Resolution for Physicians
It is not the presence of conflict that is critical; it is the ability to resolve it in a productive and healthy manner that matters most.
Managing Your Practice's Revenue Cycle in 2015
There is no time like the present to review your patient payment strategy. Here are 11 questions every practice should consider.
How Practices Can Compete With Walk-in Clinics
Rather than disparage walk-in clinics, make an effort to reach out and form a collaborative arrangement. Both your practice and patients could benefit.
The Best of Physicians Practice Pearls in 2014
Our experts at Physicians Practice Pearls have written on a wide variety of practice-management topics, but these eight columns stood out as the gems.
How to Deal with an Annoying Medical Practice Coworker
People are often oblivious to their irritating habits. Here are strategies for dealing with three types of irksome behavior.
Patients' Biggest Gripe About Physicians
We know patients feel frustration with their physicians on some level. But, surprisingly, it's not always about the long wait.
When Your New Physician Is Underperforming
Let's face it, medicine is a business. If your new physician isn't productive, your practice will suffer. Here are some strategies to speed things up.
Six Tech-Tips to Tame Your Medical Practice Workload
The promise of technology is to reduce work flow and to reap smoother operations. But are you using technology in your practice to its full advantage?
Six Ways to Avoid a RAC Audit
If you believe your practice is too small to warrant the attention of Recovery Audit Contractors, think again. Here are ways to prepare for scrutiny.
Medical Staff Accountability Will Improve Performance
Holding staff accountable is crucial to your practice's success. Doing so will make sure that everyone is committed to both the practice and patients.
Five Ways to Control Technology Vendor Demos
Tech demos often focus on standard features that don't tell the whole story. Take control by providing vendors with a list of the problems you want to solve.
Five Ways to Improve Patient Collections
Effective patient collections are becoming more critical to the financial health of your practice. Here are several strategies to help your practice get paid.
Patient Portals Can Help You Meet Medical-home Criteria
Patient portals aren’t just a cool marketing tool. In addition to helping a practice meet meaningful use, they are an important part of medical homes.
ABCs of Coding Vaccine Administration
Reporting vaccine administration can be tricky. Practices should review most recent updates and be aware of differences between commercial and federal payers.
How to Engage Your Medical Practice Staff
Employees who are "engaged" have greater commitment to the practice, and often go above and beyond their basic job descriptions.
Getting the Most Out of a Medical Conference
Attending a conference shouldn't be done on the fly. If you prepare ahead of time and have a plan, you'll get the most value for your time.
Getting Medical Practice Staff to Work Together
Even dedicated staff can sometimes have tunnel vision. But unless team members work together to achieve practice-wide goals, productivity suffers.
