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Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017
| Contributor Information
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Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Physicians confront numerous practice management challenges, from developing the right practice strategy, to managing staff, to dealing with complaints from patients and handling overdue bills. Medscape's "Practice Management Report: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints" is the result of a survey sent to physicians about these and many other practice challenges. Over 1150 physicians across more than 25 specialties provided insights into how they manage their practices.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Word of mouth and a reputation for providing quality care are the two factors that most physicians cited that draw patients to their practices. Accepting patients' insurance and appointment availability are also drivers. Owners are more likely than employed physicians to cite their reputation for providing quality care and being an expert in their specialty.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Word of mouth topped the list for 75% of female physicians and 70% of male physicians. Coming in second was a reputation for providing quality care, cited by 67% of women and 71% of men. Accepting the patient's insurance is another key factor, according to half of men and almost half of women.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
The physician landscape has become increasingly competitive, but most physicians are satisfied with the annual income that their practices are generating. Slightly more self-employed (15%) than employed (10%) doctors are very satisfied with their annual income.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Specialists generally earn more than primary care physicians, so it's not surprising that a higher percentage of specialists are either somewhat or very satisfied with their practice's annual income.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Annual overhead costs play a big role in profitability. The majority of self-employed physicians are unhappy that so much income goes to overhead, although almost one third (31%) of self-employed physicians say that they are very or somewhat satisfied with these costs.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
In years past, sending a patient the bill after the visit was the norm, but the cost of sending bills—and the percentage of patients who don't pay promptly—have both increased. Now, requiring payment as patients check out is preferred by almost one third (30%) of self-employed physicians. Owners are more likely than partners to require payment at the time of the visit.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Nearly one fourth (23%) of self-employed physicians say that less than 5% of their bills are more than 90 days overdue, while 37% say that 11% to 20% of their bills are more than 90 days overdue. Partners have a higher percentage of bills more than 90 days overdue versus owners.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Sending mail and email reminders, and instructing their staff to phone patients, are the most commonly used methods for physicians to remind patients to pay their bills. Among the more aggressive approaches are requiring payment of past due accounts before scheduling an appointment and using a collection agency.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Meetings and discussions with physician partners to address goals and problems are alive and well. Almost half (49%) of physicians have regularly scheduled meetings, and half of physicians get together with partners on an ad-hoc basis.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Patients increasingly go online to voice complaints, but the majority of physicians learn about such gripes in person. Complaints are also received through letters, emails, phone calls, and the practice's receptionist.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Physicians address patient complaints in many ways. Over half phone patients to talk about their complaints, and more than half also have discussions with staff to find ways to avert future issues.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
The office manager is the go-to person for staff complaints. Almost two thirds (64%) of employed physicians and 51% of self-employed physicians say their office manager holds this responsibility. More self-employed (30%) than employed (4%) doctors take the matter into their own hands.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Having enough administrative staff is a key factor in practice efficiency. Self-employed (83%) and employed (77%) physicians feel that they are well staffed. Only 17% of self-employed and 23% of employed physicians said they have insufficient administrative staff.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
In self-employed physicians' practices, the full-time office staff includes an average of 1.9 receptionists, 1.3 billers and coders, 0.7 office managers, and 0.6 medical record clerks. In employed physicians' practices, full-time staff includes an average of 2.8 receptionists, 1.5 billers and coders, 0.9 office managers, and 0.8 medical record clerks.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Because a medical practice is essentially a team activity, staff challenges can become time-consuming, harm morale, and drain efficiency. Over one third of self-employed and employed physicians said they have no problems with their administrative staff. Staff turnover, however, affects more employed (20%) than self-employed (14%) physicians.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Daily and weekly meetings with administrative staff can boost staff morale and practice efficiency. More self-employed than employed physicians make meetings a part of their daily or weekly schedule.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Having the right number of clinical personnel enables the practice to move patients along with less delay. Over two thirds (67%) of self-employed and over half (52%) of employed doctors said they have adequate clinical staffing.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
In self-employed physicians' practices, the full-time medical staff includes an average of 3.0 physicians, 3.0 medical assistants, 1.4 registered nurses, 0.2 physician assistants, and 0.5 nurse practitioners. In employed physicians' practices, full-time includes an average of 4.0 physicians, 3.9 medical assistants, 1.8 registered nurses, 0.3 physician assistants, and 1.0 nurse practitioners.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
The largest percentage of self-employed and employed physicians meet with their clinical staff on a daily or weekly basis. Only 10% of self-employed and 15% of employed physicians said that they never have clinical staff meetings.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Strategic plans, once the domain of corporations and small businesses, are increasingly being implemented in physician practices to create profitability and efficiency.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Consultants are often called upon for their experience in implementing successful strategic plans. More employed than self-employed physicians are currently seeking out consultants.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Most self-employed physicians work together with their partners to create their strategic plan. Only a very small percentage (7%) of these physicians were not involved.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
The majority of employed physicians participated in the creation of the strategic plan with their organization. Of note, 43% of employed physicians said the strategic plan was developed without their input.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
When asked whether they have been successful in meeting their plan's goals, the majority of both self-employed and employed physicians said they have been somewhat successful. Over one fourth (27%) of self-employed doctors reported being very successful.
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
Medscape Practice Management Report 2017: Strategies, Staff Issues, and Complaints
Leslie Kane, MA; Sandra Levy | October 11, 2017 | Contributor Information
More than 19,200 physicians in over 27 specialties responded to this year's Medscape compensation survey and told about their compensation, productivity, challenges, and more.Medscape Features Slideshows, April 2017
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Comments on Medscape are moderated and should be professional in tone and on topic. You must declare any conflicts of interest related to your comments and responses. Please see our Commenting Guide for further information. We reserve the right to remove posts at our sole discretion.
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Contributor Information
Leslie Kane, MA
Senior Director
Medscape Business of Medicine
Sandra Levy
Senior Editor
Medscape Business of Medicine
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