Dissecting the business of a private pediatric practice for the purpose of examining its parts & discourse
We don't charge for medical records. And here is why: When people ask for their records, nine out of 10 times, it is because they are leaving the practice. And the way I look at it people leave for two reasons. They are upset at the practice They are leaving as a result of a situation beyond their control (eg insurance, moving, etc). Collecting payment from somebody that is upset at you or your practice is very uncomfortable and … [Read more...]
One of the guys I follow online posted this on his blog. I thought it was really good, so I wanted to share it with you all. "What absolutely irritates customers to infinity and beyond is when the perception is established that not only did you fail to get it right…you also failed to care about it. They feel taken advantage of, and this naturally will cause them to not do business with you again — and to tell everyone they know how badly … [Read more...]
If you are a regular reader of this blog, you probably know about my e-book, 101 Ways to Transform Your Practice. If you haven’t picked it up (it is free by the way) I wanted to give you a little nudge to do so. Not everything in the ebook is going to work in your practice. But at the very least, I think the ebook will spark ideas that you would have not had otherwise. If you are still not convinced, then let me share this little … [Read more...]
If you are like most people, you probably don't even notice if a candidate smiles spontaneously. During interviews, most of us are so consumed with the candidate's skills, and finding out if they can do the job, that we often over look important aspects that in many cases may be more important. The funny thing is that you can teach people most any skill, but you can't teach them to smile. And for people in the service industry, smiling is … [Read more...]
Dr. Richard Lander, pediatrician extraordinaire and Survivor Pediatrics contributor, was nice enough to share with me a presentation that he created with the intent to inform residents and new physicians a little bit about medical coding. The presentation is not comprehensive and by no means is it intended to replace a good coding class or seminar, but at the very least, it will give you a starting point. I've uploaded the file to … [Read more...]
If you are in the Chicago area, I wanted to let you know about a chance to hear me speak. I will be speaking about Social Media: How to Use it to Improve your Practice at the CCPA Annual Meeting. If you are not a CCPA member, I'd suggest to become one. They are a great GPO. If you dont' know what a GPO is or how it can help your practice out, click on THIS link to learn more about how a GPO can save you serious money. And to learn more … [Read more...]
In our area, there was an increase in "whooping cough" cases mainly due to an outbreak in several schools this school year. As a result, the IL Department of Public Health issued a requirement that all children entering the sixth and the ninth grade will be required to provide proof they received Tdap. The letter they sent to parents made clear that if they didn't have proof that the child received the shot, the child would be excluded from … [Read more...]
In our practice, customer service is a corner stone of our core value as a company. We feel it is one of the easiest and less expensive ways to distinguish our selves from other health care providers in the area. I always say to our team members, "the Amoxicilin we prescribe in this office is the same Amoxicilin that the practice down the road prescribes. The Prevnar we give out here is the same Prevnar other practices give out. For the most … [Read more...]
Today's guest blogger is Chip Hart. Chip is the Director of Pediatric Solutions at Physician's Computer Company and he blogs at Confessions of a Pediatric Consultant. This post is yet another discussion on the SOAPM listserv. By the way, if you are not part of SOAPM you are really missing out. Anyway, Chip answered a question that someone posted about email and text communication with parents. They wanted to know if anybody used a service they … [Read more...]
Having an online presence does five things: 1) It allows the practice to engage patient outside of the practice which is appealing to parents. 2) It creates a sense of community which shows what the practice is about. 3) It gives parents/patients a platform to share their positive experience about the practice; which is critical in the context of potential patients/parents evaluating one’s practice from online reviews. 4) It allows … [Read more...]
