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The Center for Optimum Wellness Doctor seeks to expand established health care practice. Background: The owner of a 15-year old health care practice was seeking to expand her practice. The doctor had no formal business training, and as a result, had been relying on a series of “industry experts” to help shape her practice. Most of the previous consultants had focused solely on specific aspects of her practice and provided only short-term operational and financial improvements. Challenge: Overall, the doctor’s view was that of a physician and not of a business owner. She was focused primarily on taking care of and managing her patients’ ailments while delegating responsibility for most of the practice’s business functions to others. Upon further inspection, it was found that this was not necessarily a conscious decision, but rather an outcropping of not seeing the business as a whole. In addition, the administrative side of the practice was not something the doctor enjoyed. In addition to a high employee turnover rate and shrinking profits due to rising costs and flat revenues, a changing medical insurance landscape was further squeezing her bottom line. Expanding without stabilizing the company first would only magnify its existing problems. Strategy/Solution: The Plaid Group worked with the doctor to create a strategy to stabilize the Center prior to pursuing any growth initiatives. First we analyzed the overall health of the company by delving into existing practice trends. Then we identified, prioritized, and began addressing problems by coaching the doctor on ways to guide and improve operations of the three essential business functions (sales, operations, and accounting). In addition to treating patients, one of the things the doctor enjoyed was meeting new people and marketing her practice. So The Plaid Group developed and implemented a marketing strategy designed to increase demand for the most profitable services by leveraging her personality. We identified several simple actions that she could do consistently and enjoy doing, and that would make the most impact on the practice’s performance. For example, we when a seriously ill patient left the Center after being treated, the doctor followed up with a phone call to that patient to check in on their recovery. She followed up each new patient visit with a phone call as well. The overall marketing program was clearly defined so that the doctor and her staff understood why each step was necessary. We also created a process and associated tools for tracking and forecasting trends of key business indicators such as weekly sales and new patient volume. Additionally, we worked with the Center’s staff to develop and implement a practical, realistic, simple, and understandable claims management process to increase cash flow. Lastly, we helped the doctor adopt more effective personnel management skills and habits. Results: The Plaid Group’s simple, clear plan helped the doctor to view her practice as a business and change her role from that of a health care practitioner to that of a business owner. With this new perspective, she could more effectively delegate responsibility and manage her employees. Her overall satisfaction level increased because now she could truly focus on the facets of her practice she enjoyed. Within a year, other results included:
Testimonial from Norri J. Collier - President, The Center for Optimum Wellness, PA. |
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