Let’s face it, there are so many things a practice owner needs to do to run his or her practice smoothly and efficiently. The key here is to delegate these tasks to your top people. However, the first thing any practice owner needs to figure out is to determine which area of practice management is most crucial.
You see, the purpose of the owner is to be a coach. The coach needs to tell the staff what he or she wants them to concentrate on. The only way to get what you want out of your practice is to focus on the main need for your practice,
This need can change weekly or monthly. The best way to know is by graphing your key numbers. There are many statistics one can graph, but the easiest and fastest way to get this done is by graphing four key numbers. These are:
- Weekly Charges
- Weekly Collections
- Weekly New Patients
- Weekly Office Visits
These numbers should also be done monthly as well. So, when looking at these numbers, one number should stand out. Remember, all of these vital statistics are inter-related. In order for collections to increase, you need more office visits and/or new patients. You also cannot collect money if you don’t have adequate charges. Let’s say your charges are down. You have to dig deep to find out the causes. Are visits down? If so, are you recalling patients? How is your internal and shoe leather (visiting other referral sources) marketing doing? Maybe these numbers are just fine, but your per visit value is down. If this is so, you might have to rethink your protocols, your better yet, follow the ones you have. There is a good chance you might not have written out these protocols.
You need to take action immediately in whatever area is in need of an overhaul or just some attention. The key in life is whatever you focus on, is what you get.
If you have questions about the Top Practices Mastermind Group or any of our programs, such as the Practice Management courses, you can call us at (717) 725-2679 or email us at [email protected], we will be delighted to answer all of your questions.