Here are four ways orthopedic surgeons can improve efficiency at their practice.
1. Delegate practice 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, a medical billing and advocacy group with offices in New Jersey and California. "The doctor needs to learn to delegate both internally and externally. The doctor should be focused on medicine."
2. Keep your staff trained appropriately. If you have employees with downtime, this is a great opportunity to enroll them in training courses that hone their skills and make them more efficient in the long run, according to Cynthia Dunn, a practice management consultant with the Medical Group Management Association, based in Cocoa Beach, Fla. "One of the biggest problems I see is a lack of training," Ms. Dunn says. "Staff are not equipped to do what they need to do. Let's train our folks to utilize the tools we give them."
Donna Lahey, the administrator of Spine Institute of Arizona in Scottsdale is not sending staff to outside courses, but she is using downtime to cross-train them in-house. For example, her billing office trained a front desk clerk to seek authorizations for insurance coverage and a file clerk to mail out billing statements, freeing up the billing staff to deal with denied claims, which had been piling up. "We're more on top of everything now and that's because we have people with these extra skills," Ms. Lahey says. "The physicians have gotten accustomed to the extra resources, so when we're back to a full schedule we may need to hire somebody. We'd probably hire a 'float' who would be cross-trained in a variety of jobs."
3. Subspecialize your practice. Orthopedic surgeons should learn an ultra specialization, says Craig Levitz, MD, an orthopedic surgeon and partner at Orlin & Cohen Orthopedic Associates in Rockville Centre, N.Y., to keep the practice profitable. Surgeons should focus on performing only a few different procedures, such as arthroscopy, instead of performing general orthopedics. Join with other surgeons who specialize in different areas to make the practice more versatile. "When you are doing the same thing every day, you can do it more efficiently, both quality- and time-wise," says Dr. Levitz. "If you are setting up to do the same thing every day with the same team, you work quickly." He says the average time it takes surgeons to perform an arthroscopy is 1-1.5 hours. With his ultra-specialization, he is able to perform the surgery in 10 minutes. "Regardless of the reimbursement curve, you are generating money," he says.
4. Implement electronic systems. Implementing electronic health records at your practice means spending time upfront to train on the system, but it can increase efficiencies in the long run. Physicians can use the speech recognition software with the EHR to dictate reports as the appointment occurs. "From a voice recognition standpoint, we certainly have greater possibilities in the office, but there are also greater possibilities for increased efficiencies in the research world," says Michael Rauh, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at UB Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine in Orchard Park, N.Y. "I can dictate papers and e-mails, and there is a template for my dictations in the operating room. In the surgery center world, this is a way to certainly save money for physicians who are working there and are incentivized to increased revenues and decrease costs. The increased efficiency also allows me to spend more time with my family." Automated systems can also help physicians with accurate billing and coding for their procedures.
Read Articles Related to Efficiency in Orthopedics:
5 Tips for Promoting Efficiency in Orthopedic Practices
3 Ways to Increase Orthopedic Practice Revenue Cycle Efficiency
3 Steps to Improve Spine Efficiency and Cut Costs
1. Delegate practice 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, a medical billing and advocacy group with offices in New Jersey and California. "The doctor needs to learn to delegate both internally and externally. The doctor should be focused on medicine."
2. Keep your staff trained appropriately. If you have employees with downtime, this is a great opportunity to enroll them in training courses that hone their skills and make them more efficient in the long run, according to Cynthia Dunn, a practice management consultant with the Medical Group Management Association, based in Cocoa Beach, Fla. "One of the biggest problems I see is a lack of training," Ms. Dunn says. "Staff are not equipped to do what they need to do. Let's train our folks to utilize the tools we give them."
Donna Lahey, the administrator of Spine Institute of Arizona in Scottsdale is not sending staff to outside courses, but she is using downtime to cross-train them in-house. For example, her billing office trained a front desk clerk to seek authorizations for insurance coverage and a file clerk to mail out billing statements, freeing up the billing staff to deal with denied claims, which had been piling up. "We're more on top of everything now and that's because we have people with these extra skills," Ms. Lahey says. "The physicians have gotten accustomed to the extra resources, so when we're back to a full schedule we may need to hire somebody. We'd probably hire a 'float' who would be cross-trained in a variety of jobs."
3. Subspecialize your practice. Orthopedic surgeons should learn an ultra specialization, says Craig Levitz, MD, an orthopedic surgeon and partner at Orlin & Cohen Orthopedic Associates in Rockville Centre, N.Y., to keep the practice profitable. Surgeons should focus on performing only a few different procedures, such as arthroscopy, instead of performing general orthopedics. Join with other surgeons who specialize in different areas to make the practice more versatile. "When you are doing the same thing every day, you can do it more efficiently, both quality- and time-wise," says Dr. Levitz. "If you are setting up to do the same thing every day with the same team, you work quickly." He says the average time it takes surgeons to perform an arthroscopy is 1-1.5 hours. With his ultra-specialization, he is able to perform the surgery in 10 minutes. "Regardless of the reimbursement curve, you are generating money," he says.
4. Implement electronic systems. Implementing electronic health records at your practice means spending time upfront to train on the system, but it can increase efficiencies in the long run. Physicians can use the speech recognition software with the EHR to dictate reports as the appointment occurs. "From a voice recognition standpoint, we certainly have greater possibilities in the office, but there are also greater possibilities for increased efficiencies in the research world," says Michael Rauh, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at UB Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine in Orchard Park, N.Y. "I can dictate papers and e-mails, and there is a template for my dictations in the operating room. In the surgery center world, this is a way to certainly save money for physicians who are working there and are incentivized to increased revenues and decrease costs. The increased efficiency also allows me to spend more time with my family." Automated systems can also help physicians with accurate billing and coding for their procedures.
Read Articles Related to Efficiency in Orthopedics:
5 Tips for Promoting Efficiency in Orthopedic Practices
3 Ways to Increase Orthopedic Practice Revenue Cycle Efficiency
3 Steps to Improve Spine Efficiency and Cut Costs