Month: May 2019

Creating the Right Ambiance in your Practice’s Waiting Room

Does your waiting room add a calming vibe to your medical practice? Specifically, for your patients? The waiting room is your patient’s first impression of your practice. If your waiting room looks like it’s not taken care of, then how will your patients trust you’ll give them the best care in the examination room? Spruce up your waiting room with these tips, and your patients will feel relaxed and less worried for their next appointment!

  1. Greet your patients!

The easiest way to step up your practice is a friendly gesture. From the moment patients walk through the door, your staff should welcome them with a smile and friendly attitude. Patients will feel unwelcome when they visit a practice where the staff are cold – it’s also very off-putting. When your staff is friendly, your patients will be more likely to refer family and friends to your practice. Plus, a smile won’t cost you anything!

  1. Keep it Clean

There’s nothing worse than a messy waiting room! A bunch of ripped magazines on the floor, the furniture is moved around, and a dirty floor/carpet is not the most calming environment for your patients. Implement regular cleaning duties to your staff or hire a custodian. The cleanliness of your waiting room can make or break a patient experience.

  1. Upgrade your Lighting

You probably haven’t considered this, but you might want to upgrade the lights in your waiting room. Old yellow lighting can make your waiting area look dim and depressing. Choose brighter new LED lights for your ceilings and place some nice lamps on any side tables. Brighter lights can really boost the mood of any space, and your patients deserve to feel at ease while they’re waiting.

  1. Décor it up!

Hopefully your waiting room doesn’t have any shag carpets, or any décor from 50 years ago for that matter! Modernize your waiting area with new furniture and décor so your medical practice can feel more like a home than an office. You know what that means — time to hit up your local home furnishing store (as if that’s a bad thing!).

The waiting room for your medical practice is a reflection on you and your care, so you should take some time to improve patient interaction and give your waiting room a makeover. Your patients will surely appreciate the new look!

How to Lead So Your Employees Listen

Leading any group of people and ensuring they are all actively engaged with your vision can be a challenge. A great leader knows how to effectively capture the attention of each and every one of his or her employees. Your passion comes naturally – and it’s this passion that will inspire those around you, as long as you are able to share it properly through communication and genuine compassion. Be the boss by showing where power lies, but also being fair so you are liked and trusted. Learn to lead your employees so they want to listen with these helpful tips.

Be real

Yes, you have an image to maintain – however, no one ever said that you can’t be the true you while leading. Be genuinely you with the best interest of your practice in mind and your employees will trust you. “Do as I say, not as I do” doesn’t apply in leadership. Being who you truly are – and who you say you are – to your employees is a huge step forward. If you want them to listen to what you have to say, and follow the path you’ve laid ahead; gaining trust has to be of utmost priority.

Know who you are

Following the previous point, in order to “be real” – you must know who you are. Knowing yourself, and what you want as a leader is essential in creating an environment of order… and one that matches your thoughts, beliefs and actions. If you are frazzled and disorganized, your practice will be as well. Know your values and they will translate into your leadership.

Advisors

Large corporations have advisors on standby at all times, but even as a small health center, an advisor can work wonders. Have someone you trust who can let you know what he or she thinks about the job you’re doing. Additionally, receiving unbiased feedback on your leadership is important. Knowing what you do well, and what you do not-so-well, can drastically change your approach.

Engage

The worst leaders are those who aren’t truly there for their employees. If you’re a boss who simply clocks in and clocks out, this does not properly showcase your passion and dedication for your team. In addition to being generally available for your employees, also make sure to be personable. Engage in conversation, banter and anything that can bring you and an employee together. Lead with engagement and empathy.

Be present

Similar to being engaged, simply being around is a big deal. If a team member has a question, does he or she know how to reach you? Do you show up for training? Do you give any seminars? Be available and allow your employees to enjoy your company – and for you to enjoy theirs as well.

As a leader, it’s essential that your team can know, like and trust you – as this is how you’ll inspire a vision for others to follow.

Practice Management FQHC Quick Tips 5.14

Effective, efficient medical billing is increasingly important to maintain a successful practice.

Failing to consistently obtain proper credentialing, privileging, and re-credentialing for all medical professionals associated with a practice or hospital results in lost revenues.

Most importantly, keep your social media accounts active. A constant presence on social media is now mandatory in order to effectively market a medical practice. In fact, social media is becoming increasingly important as the generations born into the social media world become the majority.

Locate groups that are related to your practice’s specialty and join the conversation. This is a great way to grow your network and show off your expertise.

Nothing is more frustrating than finding out a patient wasn’t eligible, especially when it comes to your bottom line. Make checking for eligibility a priority.

Why It’s Important to Outsource Your Medical Billing

Implementing an electronic health record (EHR) can improve workflow and communication with patients, but the technology alone won’t maximize billing efficiency within your practice. The digital aspect of working in healthcare is complex, so it makes sense that outsourcing your billing could benefit your processes. If you’re still hesitant to make this move, consider these reasons to begin outsourcing now:

Reduce billing errors.

Outsourcing speeds up reimbursement because the company you’ve outsourced to thoroughly evaluates claims and looks for errors that could slow down payments.

A benefit of reducing errors like these is that a reputable medical billing partner will be able to supply you with hard data that will help you keep an eye on the finances of your practice. You’ll learn which insurance carriers pay the fastest, which services are most likely to be challenged, and other important information.

Reduce administrative workload.

Outsourcing your billing duties means that you’ll dedicate fewer man hours to keeping your staff updated on medical coding changes and modifiers. Your staff will also spend less time inputting information and preparing claims. You’ll no longer have to spend excess amounts of time on the phone seeking pre-authorizations from insurance carriers. Instead, you’ll be able to dedicate that time to patient care.

No need to keep up with new regulations.

The regulations surrounding the world of medical billing are constantly changing. Keeping up with them is time consuming and inconvenient. By outsourcing your medical billing, you are delegating those responsibilities to professionals who are trained and dedicated to staying up-to-date on them.

Better data security.

Well-established third-party billing service providers provide a transparent billing process. Most of these providers are HIPAA-compliant and have secure processes to protect against hacking attempts. Companies and medical practices need to be sure that their data and their patients’ data are safe, and reputable servicers are able to provide this security.

Enhance financial efficiency.

When you outsource medical billing, you’ll typically get paid faster with less effort from internal staff members. You won’t have to invest in ongoing training either. A reputable company that focuses on medical billing typically has up-to-date technology and well-trained staff, leading to higher revenue capture.

You’ll want to maintain optimal time and financial efficiency within your practice. Hiring a servicer to take care of cumbersome duties will help you do this. You’ll sacrifice some control, but easily gain back that investment in money and time saved.

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