The Journal of medical practice management : MPM
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The first step in transforming your patient mix is to recognize that it is appropriate to prefer to see a specific type of patient over other types. You may enjoy working in a particular practice niche more than others, and there may be financial considerations as well. The second step is to change your marketing so that it focuses on your preferred, or "perfect," patient. This strategy will allow you to build a patient database that will enable you to change, over time, the type of patients you are seeing in your practice.
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The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (PPACA), although a subject of much debate in the Unites States, was enacted on March 23, 2010, and upheld by the Supreme Court on June 28, 2012. This act advocates that "healthcare is a right, not a privilege." The main goals of PPACA are to minimize the number of uninsured Americans and make healthcare available to everyone at an affordable price. The Congressional Budget Office has determined that 94% of Americans will have healthcare coverage while staying under the $900 billion limit that President Barack Obama established by bending the healthcare cost curve and reducing the deficit over the next 10 years.
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Our culture seems to be endlessly fascinated with its stars in entertainment, athletics, politics, and business, and holds fast to the idea that extraordinary talent accounts for an individual's extraordinary performance. At first glance, managing a star performer in your medical practice may seem like it would be an easy task. However, there's much more to managing a star performer than many practice managers realize. ⋯ It explores ways to keep the star performer motivated, while at the same time helping the star performer to meld into the existing medical practice team. This article suggests strategies for redefining the star performer's role, for holding the star performer accountable for his or her behavior, and for coaching the star performer. Finally, this article offers practical tips for keeping the star performer during trying times, for identifying and cultivating new star performers, and for managing medical practice prima donnas.
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A recent trend has independent medical practices throwing in the towel and selling to hospitals in hopes of eliminating the financial burdens of private practice. Incentive payments, tiered fee schedules, and patient collaboration place the primary care physician at the center of the ever-evolving healthcare payment system. Hospital services represent a high-cost, highly scrutinized line item with reform programs emphasizing a reduction in many of the services hospitals rely on today for their revenue. In an environment moving from volume to value, and featuring Accountable Care Organizations and Patient-Centered Medical Homes, hospitals may soon turn to these same medical practices as the source of their financial future.