During a panel at the 12th Annual Spine, Orthopedic and Pain Management-driven ASC Conference + The Future of Spine in Chicago June 12, Stephen Hochschuler, MD, chairman at Plano-based Texas Back Institute; Kenneth Renkens, MD, senior partner with Indiana Spine Group; and Khawar Siddique, MD, MBA, a neurosurgeon with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Beverly Hills Spine Surgery in Los Angeles, discussed a variety of topics, including how to improve the profitability of spine programs.
The panel was moderated by Molly Gamble, managing editor with Becker's Hospital Review.
During the discussion, each surgeon shared some ideas on how physicians and ASCs can make their spine programs more profitable. The highlights are listed below.
1. Look into a surgery center partnership. Both Dr. Hochschuler and Dr. Siddique recommended looking into having ownership in a surgery center. "I do think the lasts big bastion of surgeons making money in owning facilities is in surgery centers," Dr. Hochschuler said. Dr. Siddique noted he is very happy with his surgery center business.
2. Stay out of network. Dr. Siddique recommended this, but did note that the out-of-network model works best in two market types: those with a higher than average income, and those that are small with no competitors.
3. Know your numbers. Dr. Renkens said physicians in surgery centers need to be aware of what service lines or ancillary services are profitable for their center. "If you have a surgery center with spine only and you know your costs, you can definitely be profitable," he said, while other ancillary services may not be as profitable and can suck revenue.
4. Keep patients engaged. This can be done through technology, like a patient portal, or though the old-fashioned handshake, Dr. Siddique said.
Overall, it is important for surgeons to keep an eye on the horizon, Dr. Hochschuler said. "Know where the puck is going, not where it has been," he said. "Even if you guess wrong, it's better than not being in the game."