Are You Running In The Hallway?

by Dr. Jessica Dolgan
Founder, Therapy Partner

This isn’t a famous quote, nor is it likely the best metaphor, just one I found myself using repeatedly when advising clinicians. It seems that private practice business ownership is no different than any other busy small business owner who finds themselves running up and down a long “hallway” we all call “business” or “practice.” We’re all manning our public reputation and brand, the intake of new business and the customer experience, (in our case the experience of clients) through the “front door,” and running down a long hallway to the backdoor to monitor expenses and cost effectively manage their practice to ensure profits are where they are expected to be.

I like this visual of a busy clinician running up and down this hallway all the while seeing clients in the middle. If we’re all being honest we’re not running up and down at all. We’re spending most of our time in the middle, head down just performing the duties we were hired for and all the front door work and back door work gets lost or managed in any free moment we can find. Most of us know the business marketing or brand need adjustment, and that we really ought to find the time to manage our expenses and really genuinely set a business trajectory.

What happens is life and dedication to the work we love most; which means that finding time to cultivate and craft an amazing practice is going to take most of all a desire to break a pattern…a genuine investment in ourselves, real time, sustained focus, and discipline…Zig Zigler said so wisely “Moving from survival to stability, from stability to success, from success to significance” starts with a directed plan and self-imposed discipline.

Show up for your private practice

“80% of Success is Showing Up” – Woody Allen

This remark is pretty accurate. When clinicians “show up” that means we make ourselves available to provide excellent clinical care. This is good. This is the core of our business. Turns out however, just showing up for our patients may actually not be enough. Private practice management requires clinicians wear the many hats of business owners.

The problem with clinical private practice compared to other health care organizations is that most clinicians are required to show up for about seven jobs on a daily basis in order to be successful. They find themselves managing private practice administration, scheduling  and streamlining the patient process, handling billing, therapy notes and files, tracking revenue, overseeing marketing/advertising, doing accounting and more.

An additional struggle for clinicians is we come from an industry where our “clinical training” simply addressed one component of our position. Yup, no actual business education for us. We graduate, take an entry level position and then over time make our way out to the private sector to pioneer our own practice.  Often with no business strategy. Let’s be honest, most of us have never even seen a business plan.

So here’s to clinicians of the new era. Clinicians who not only show up for clients but are now “showing up” to anything and everything other than just seeing patients. Here’s to showing up for business education. After all a private practice, isn’t just a practice that one masters over time, it’s our livelihood. It’s also the source of our inspiration and a place patients depend on for the very best mental health care.

Embrace Technology & Thrive 
How To Shop Practice Management Software…

Simplify, Streamline, Enhance Security, Save Time & Increase Revenue!

Utilizing an online, intuitive, progressive, and therapist-centric billing and practice management system helps you to stay ahead in private practice!

The healthcare field is replete with redundancy. Patients are scheduled separately, billed separately, statements are not automated, records are disorganized, patient communication isn’t secure, and revenue tracking a headache.

The key to streamlining your practice is to remove multiple devices and actions, working to intuitively integrate previously cumbersome and time-consuming administrative tasks. This will free you to focus on providing quality clinical care, and ultimately ensure you love your life and practice!

Audit your practice and consider what tasks are taking up time, money, and energy that could be redirected towards stabilizing your business and growth (if increased revenue is a goal).

Find a Practice Management Solution That Ensures You Love Your Practice!

Ensure You Are Receiving These Top Practice Management Features When Shopping:

• • Storage (Manages and Stores All Patient Healthcare & Financial Data)

• • Integrated Merchant Banking Management

• • Mobile and Online Responsive Access

• • Integrated Calendaring (Scheduling that syncs with billing)

• • Quick Bill Features (Intuitive Billing: Allows You to Bill Multiple Sessions at One Time)

• • Insurance and Private Pay Billing Features

• • Customized Libraries (Billing/Treatment Codes, Diagnostics)

• • Progress Notes: (Offers Templates/Custom Options)

• • Client Record System (Stores Comprehensive Clinical Data and Unlimited Upload)

• • Automated Patient Statements (Intuitive Systems Should Automate Encrypted, Password Protected Statements Monthly)

• • Comprehensive Revenue Tracking and Reporting

• • Patient Portal That Ensures Secure Patient Communication

• • Text/Email Message Patient Appointment Reminders

• • Master Dashboard to Easily Manage, Track, and Direct Your Business

• • Dedicated Customer Support

• Comprehensive Business Education (Webinars, Podcast, Articles)

Why Use Practice Management Software?

When therapists and counselors use a cloud-based practice management software they’ll save time, have less stress, and be more focused on clinical care.

The behavioral healthcare industry is filled with redundancy. First of all, patients are scheduled and billed separately. Next, statements are not automated and are difficult to generate and send. Also, records are disorganized and patient communication isn’t secure. Finally, revenue tracking is a headache, and many clinicians have no idea about the financial health of their private practice.

Mental health therapists and counselors spend hours a week frustrated by the hassles of administering their private practice leaving them stressed and reducing the time they have available to serve others.

Practice management software streamlines patient scheduling, billing and documentation and allows therapists and counselors more time to focus on what they do best; treating mental health issues.

Take a few minutes to audit your mental health private practice and consider what tasks are taking up time, money, and energy.

Start by asking a few questions about your private practice:

1. How many hours a week do you spend scheduling clients?
2. How much time do you spend on billing or generating superbills?
3. Do you experience a lot of late cancels, or no-shows? Are you sending automated patient reminders?
4. Do you have large outstanding balances?

These are just a few areas where having practice management technology vastly reduce the time spent on single tasks.

Investing in practice management software allows you to operate a more profitable business.

We’d love to provide you a comprehensive business audit to show you how Therapy Partner’s practice management software can transform your private practice into well run business. Contact us today.

Ethical and Legal Liability Quiz

Learn to Protect Healthcare & Financial Data; Empower Your Practice & Let Go of the Worry 

We are in a very sensitive business…protecting patient healthcare and financial data must be something we dedicate time to. To better understand possible liability and learn strategies to improve data protection, take the following patient security quiz:

• • Do you use a secure system to communicate with patients (email, text, phone, video)?

• • Are you storing patient data in local hard drives?

• • Do you store patient financial data or credit card data in your office? (This is prohibited activity according to Visa and MC Rules and Regulations)

• • Are you using external hardware such as swipe machines or tools? If so have you updated these to work with chipped cards?

• • Is someone assisting you with billing and practice management; how are you protecting yourself with data breach in administration?

• • Have you considered integrating merchant services and payments into a practice management system that intuitively tracks scheduling, billing, allows full file upload, handles patient records including all services, codes and diagnostics, as well as secure patient statements?

• • Are you scheduling, billing, and documenting consultation with patients and colleagues when care coordinating?

• • Do you securely store patient files? Have you considered using an integrative EMR system to store progress notes and patient records?

• • Do you store a form of payment on file in a secure practice management system? Is this system encrypted and secure? *Top strategy to limit financial data breach.

• • Is your intake paperwork up to date? Does it clearly outline your services, and all charges, policies, and procedures?

• • Do you have proper up to date releases on all patients?

• • Are patients signing new paperwork when you change policies, rates, procedures?

• • Are you documenting all services in a patient health record including cancellations, consultations, and emergencies?

• • Are you sending secure patient statements? Are these generated from a password protected, encrypted practice management system?

• • Is your physical space secure?

• • Have you protected your hardware from intrusion and data breach?

• • Are you performing a scheduled audit to explore ways to better secure your practice?

• • Have you set time aside to shop and compare practice management systems and products designed to streamline and protect your business?

• • Have you considered how consolidating manual or isolated tasks and use of separate devices in favor for consolidated practice management may save time and money, all while ensuring your patient’s data is safe? *If you have already moved to a practice management system, please ensure you request information regarding ways your technology company protect healthcare and financial data.

The Love Your Practice Team