Starting Out – desk research
I left school more years ago than I care to remember. Then as now I make sure I do my homework though. The only difference is now I do it for private medical consultants some of whom are thinking...
You agreed the payment terms too.
Recently, I was talking to one of my clients. She was unhappy with the fees she was getting from insurance companies. Sadly she was also unhappy about how often she got paid too. Therefore she...
Measuring your practice
The other day I wrote of the importance of setting targets and then measuring performance. Several consultants emailed asking what is, in my opinion, the most useful and important measure. In all...
Smash and Grab – inappropriate billing
What on earth is that? A couple of examples recently where consultants who have tried to base their fees on the best rate available. Take the consultant who realises that PMI company Num 1 pay £300...
Targets – you need some
So we are almost 3 weeks into 2020 and hopefully, this year will be an improvement on last. Which brings me neatly to the idea of goal setting for 2020. Some private consultants did not reach the...
Why Private Medicine?
Most consultants are concerned, quite rightly, with how and why a patient has chosen to see them. Before asking the question of why and how does a patient choose you as a consultant an earlier...
Work when you should be working
It is truly depressing when I hear "my to-do list" is two pages long. That is normally followed by the statement "I haven't stopped all day but haven't achieved anything" A couple of observations....
Decide what you want and don’t stop.
To successfully perform medical invoicing or medical billing there has to be a degree of focus on the task itself. In fact, there has to be a total concentration on the expected outcome. But what is...
You can charge AND get paid for that
I was at a medical conference recently and one of the speakers - a well-established consultant surgeon and an incredibly safe pair of hands - stated during his presentation that a private surgeon...
Change of procedure once in theatre
Another familiar issue that came again last week. Consider if, during the initial consultation, you advise your patient surgery is required. The patient is therefore given a CCSD code equating to...
Guilt by association
I was asked my view of social media eg Twitter or Facebook. Whilst in my view a private surgeon should have a website, social media may not be the right place to be unless EXTREME care is exercised....
Work ON your practice; not just IN your practice
I was watching an excellent piece of video yesterday by my friend Dev Lall. Dev was explaining how most consultants do not appreciate they have to work on marketing their practice. And he is right!...